Beasts of War
by Sol Winterfang71
Summary: Born of a clan of what was best described as lycanthropes, one would imagine he would be strong, but it would come at the cost of being alone. Now, the last of the Shishisensou and the sole surviving member of the Kurotsuki branch family, he will fight with the tenacity and feroucity of a wild animal. What he never expected was to find love in another 'animal'...Rated M, v/s/l.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.

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Beasts of War

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Chapter One

Growling out of sheer annoyance, the towering genin calmly stalked down the bridge with purpose as Sasuke remained on the defensive against the Demon Brothers while Sakura was engaged in combat with Haku and Kakashi was dealing with Zabuza. Tazuna, left unguarded by his team mates, was frozen in place by the immense killing intent that choked the very air he breathed. Everything had been one bad idea after another ever since Sasuke demanded a higher ranking mission. Why couldn't that irritating pup just relax and take it easy for a little while?

Standing at 6'8", the humanoid wolf-man had a heavily muscled and intimidating stance, his body covered in light grey and white fur with soul-piercing amber eyes. Like always, he was dressed in a pair of baggy black pants on his digitigrade wolf-like legs with white cloth wrapped around his lower legs from his knees down to his permanently raised heels, a brown leather belt around his waist with a brown leather strap crossing his torso from his left hip to his right shoulder, another leather strap reached out from the one that crossed his chest and connected with a leather strap that ringed his left shoulder where it connected with the rest of the leather harness that covered his middle and lower back with a pair of longswords sheathed in leather scabards and strapped to his lower back at an angle with both handles sticking out at his left side and running parallel to each other, a necklace of metal rings and short lengths of decorative chain hung from around his neck with a large fang dangling from it, dull grey metal plates hanging from the belt at his hips with intricate designs adorning the curved steel thigh armor, dull grey metal guards on his knees and shins with similar decorations on them as his thigh armor, dull grey metal bracers strapped to his forearms with a metal plate covering the back of his hands and knuckles with the same decorative designs embedded on them, a single metal pauldron on his left shoulder that had the same decorations with a plate over his heart with several leather straps securing the armored plate to his body, and an emerald gem earing on his left ear with a beaded leather string hanging from it that had a second emerald gem dangling from the end. Engraved on the chest plate was Konoha's stylized leaf symbol.

"Fools..." 17 year old Kurotsuki Naruto growled under his breath before grabbing the handle to his bottom sword with his left hand in a reverse grip while grabbing the top sword with his right normally. Drawing them in an instant, Naruto kept his left sword in a reverse grip before crouching down and tensing his legs. Jumping and flipping in mid-air, Naruto landed in the middle of the triangle formed by his team mate and the Demon Brothers. Without missing a beat, Naruto kicked Sasuke aside with his right foot before spinning to his right. Blocking Meizu's claws with his left sword, Naruto slipped his right sword under his left blade and attempted to skewer the rogue shinobi, only for him to jump back to avoid injury while Gouzu came from Naruto's unguarded right side.

"Get back here, dog-boy!" Gouzu spat as Naruto jumped to his left slightly to dodge the Demon Brother's clawed swipe, only to jump back to his right and slam into him, knocking him back. Spinning to his left, Naruto thrust his left sword back, stabbing the narrow blade through Gouzu's right shoulder and making the chuunin scream in pain while clutching at the blade still speared through his shoulder.

"Gouzu!" Meizu exclaimed before lunging at the towering wolf-man, his clawed left hand being blocked by the blade of the lycanthropic shinobi's sword in his right hand. Maintaining the deadlock, Meizu glared into Naruto's eyes while drawing a kunai with his right hand, attempting to stab the furred man in the throat, but his efforts were for nothing as Naruto twisted his right sword and turned it to the left, shifting the leverage and changing the angle Meizu's left hand was pushing on the blade, causing the previously downward-pointing blade to swing around. "AARRGH! MY HAND!"

"That was your own fault." Naruto growled quietly as he roughly pulled his left sword from Gouzu's shoulder, spinning to the right as he tilted his right sword to his sword for a thrust. Meizu's head was loped off before he could draw breath for another scream while Gouzu's throat was skewered by Naruto's right sword. Kicking Meizu's body over with his left leg, Naruto pulled his sword free of Gouzu's corpse and let the carcass collapsed. Noticing the look of fear he was getting from Sasuke, Naruto snorted and turned toward the area Haku and Sakura were fighting. His eyes narrowed as he caught the masked female's scent.

While only one opponent this time, Haku was incredibly quick and there were too many unknown factors concerning the kunoichi. The Demon Brothers were simply too predictable in their tactics, but this one would prove challenging. That meant a different approach was required. It was obvious that Haku's preferred combat style was from mid to long range with her senbon. Thus, speed and close combat weaponry would be required. His claws would do just fine.

Sheathing the swords, Naruto ran the tip of his clawed right index finger over a hidden seal on his left bracer, causing his sheathed swords to vanish in a cloud of smoke as they were sealed away in a seal stained onto the leather hide covering his lower back. Channeling his chakra into his bracers, more pieces of metal armor spread to cover his hands completely with segmented plates armoring his fingers, leaving only his two-inch long claws uncovered, the bracers extending to reach just above his elbows while covering his forearms completely. At the same time, the metal guards on his shins and knees changed into similarly designed armor, leaving only the pads of his paw-like feet uncovered for better grip on the ground and the claws on his toes for combat.

"Go protect Tazuna, Uchiha. We can not allow him to die." Naruto growled coldly at his team mate, who could do nothing more at that moment other than obey. Scrambling to his feet, Sasuke quickly ran over to Tazuna, unable to rid his mind of the memories of watching how Naruto slew the Demon Brothers. Not even his brother had been so instinctually methodical on _that_ night...

"Alright...Round two." Naruto growled as he formed a Shadow Clone and crouched down, both brutes digging their claws into the stone floor. As if given the signal to pounce, they both took off on all fours, but as they neared the vicinity Sakura and Haku were currently engaged in combat, Naruto and his clone mirrored one another's movements and slapped their armored hands against the ground while kicking off the ground, resulting in them flipping forward rapidly and repeatedly while simultaneously using their chakra to harden their fur into hair-thin blades, both becoming a spinning ball of claws, fangs, and blades. It was a technique normally used only by the Inuzuka, but a 'friend' of his had been nice enough to teach it to him. "Gatenga!"

"What the-" Haku was caught off guard as she looked to her left to find two grey spinning masses flying through the air in her direction. Unable to complete the handseals for her Demonic Crystal Ice Mirrors technique, Haku was forced to break the deadlock between them and jump back, narrowly avoiding serious injury as the two blurs were revealed to be that wolf-man on their team and obviously a clone of his, both landing shoulder to shoulder in low crouches on all fours between Haku and Sakura. Haku narrowed her eyes behind her mask as she switched out the senbon in her hands for two of the few kunai she carried on her. "Seems like Ookami-kun wants to play, too."

"Hmph...You wish, bitch." Naruto and his clone snarled in unison before they sprinted forward on all fours, splitting up in order to flank Haku as two more clones formed between them. Slamming their hands onto the ground and flipping just in time to avoid being struck with the kunai thrown at them, the four lycans curled into a ball once again. "Gatenga: Jiyuusatsu!"

Almost as soon as their made contact with the ground, they rolled towards Haku from either side at swift speeds in pairs. Jumping up with the intention to dodge and to make them collide with one another, Haku was shocked when the four suddenly started to circle in place, their left hands extending out from one another and their armored knuckles connecting in a continuous shower of sparks as metal rubbed against metal at high speeds, the connecting sustained with chakra. One of them suddenly pushed off the ground with one of their feet in mid-roll, causing him to get thrown into the air and collide with Haku.

"Gatenga..." Naruto started as he unfurled from a ball and grabbed Haku's shoulders with his clawed hands as he flipped over her body in mid-air, only to continue with the flip and throw Haku back down into the center of his three clones as they continued to spin in place. "...Ookamino Soukutsu!"

"AHH!" Haku could only scream as she disappeared amongst the rolling balls of shredding needle-like fur, flesh-ripping claws, and gnashing fang-filled jaws. Landing a couple feet away in a low crouch on all fours, Naruto slowly stood up before forming a single handseal with his right hand, dispelling his clones and leaving Haku's corpse to fall to the ground, motionless and mauled to the point of being almost unrecognizable. Dragging the tip of his right index finger across the same hidden seal as before, his armor returned to normal and his swords reappeared.

"Are you hurt, Haruno?" Naruto inquired quietly, yet still a little coldly as turned his head slightly, but not enough to see Sakura, who stood several feet behind him. He knew she was scared, having never seen such brutal behavior before. Then again, she had never seen real combat prior to this mission, so it was to be expected of her. However, he didn't face her because he didn't like seeing people afraid of him. He didn't turn around because he didn't want to scare her any more than she already was. It would cause untold problems for his team's dynamics.

Then again, it could already have been destroyed by his decision to intervene...

"N-No...J-Just...Just don't come near me..." Sakura muttered frightfully as she took a few slowly steps back, only to turn around and run back to where Tazuna and Sasuke were. Sighing heavily, Naruto knew what he would have to do once they got back to Konoha if their behavior didn't change. He would have to request a transfer. It had happened three times already in the past year. He was two years older than his current team mates and had graduated two years prior to them. His first team had refused to be near him after watching him tear apart a group of bandits during their first C-rank mission six months into their career, not unlike now. His second time had been more tolerating of him, but they could only take so much of his behavior before Naruto was forced to transfer once more.

"...What has been done can not be undone..." Naruto muttered before the sound of a thousand chirping birds reached his ears, but he didn't react to it. He simply took a deep breath and closed his eyes, listening for any other enemies. Hearing the foot steps of almost...two hundred people and smelling only the rancid stench of booze, pitiful hygiene, and greed, Naruto knew Gatou was making his move. Drawing his swords in the same fashion as he had earlier against the Demon Brothers, Naruto started walking through the thinning mist towards the incomplete end of the bridge.

"Naruto? Where are you going?" Kakashi inquired as he pulled his hand free of Zabuza's chest, the body falling to the ground as soon as it lost the support that had been holding it up. Naruto didn't answer, but the jounin saw the look in his wolf-like student's eyes and heard the sound of many people approaching just as the mist cleared out. Coming to a stop, Gatou stepped out in front of his employees and was about to say something when Naruto hunched forward and suddenly sprinted towards them, his left sword held out in front of him as a defense while his right sword was cocked back and leveled for a spearing stab.

"Shi-URK!" Gatou's curse was cut short as Naruto's right blade slipped between his lips and punched through the back of his neck, the tip of his five foot long and three inch wide sword stabbing into the throat of a taller man behind the short tycoon. With a single swing as he spun in place, the blade cleaved through Gatou's jaw and the other man's neck while Naruto beheaded a handful of others with his left sword, kicking off the ground and leaping further into the horde with a horizontally spinning flip, his blades slicing through flesh, bone, and make-shift armor as if the bandits and civilian mercenaries were simply made of air.

"Oh, god..." Kakashi whispered in shock, unable to think of anything else as he watched the genin that had been transferred to his team about a month and a half ago simply slaughter...No. _Massacre_ the bandits with feral tenacity, heartless precision, and brutal execution visible in every attack, every movement he made. Raising his left foot and stomping down on the bent knee of a bandit weilding a spear, Naruto ignored the howl of agony as the joint was painfully dislocated, the cry silenced a moment later as Naruto swung his left sword up and stabbed down, the blade stabbing through the man's upper back, through his left thigh, and into the ground. Swinging his right sword around and behind him, Naruto blocked a katana from slicing through his back. Parrying the strike as he pulled his left sword up out of the spearman's corpse, Naruto punched the new swordsman in the throat with his left hand before swiftly stabbing behind him and skewering the heart of a axe-wielding thug with the blade of his left sword. Ripping his sword free and spinning in place once more as he crouched down, Naruto gutted a handful of others while cleaving a few forelegs from the thighs of their owners.

Another hellish symphony of screams and wails followed as Naruto continued the relentless and unending assault...

It wasn't much longer before Sakura fainted, Sasuke purged the contents of his stomach where he was standing while Tazuna managed to hold it a little longer, running to the side of the bridge and disposing of his stomach's contents over the railing. Kakashi wasn't much better, flashbacks of his experiences in the Third Great Shinobi War flying around his head as his skin grew pale and moist with a cold sweat, his hands shaking slightly. He had seen only two other people in his life that fought like that, that had similar physical conditions like Naruto's wolf-like physiology...

Everything started to make sense to him now. Naruto was one of them...

He was from the Kurotsuki clan, who were a branch family of the much larger Shishisensou clan...

He was a Beast of War...

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"..." Kakashi was silent as Sasuke and Sakura left the Hokage's office, both still feeling the psychological scarring from Naruto's killing methods. Said teen was standing a few feet away from the jounin, idly contemplating the pros and cons of another transfer. Once he was sure his two permanent students were out of ear shot, Kakashi spun around and faced the Sandaime, who was calm and collected as if nothing was wrong, with a look of outrage while jabbing a finger at Naruto, who wasn't at all concerned with the man's feelings. He was used to it by now. "Why the hell didn't you warn me about him?!"

"Because I saw no need to. It's not like Naruto-kun is a threat to other Konoha shinobi." Hiruzen responded, folding his hands in front of him and leaning back in his chair, leveling a calm and unphased stare upon the one-eyed jounin that was on the verge of having a mental breakdown right before him. "He simply doesn't have any qualms with killing, like most of his people, may they rest in peace."

"That's exactly my point, Hokage-sama! He's not fit for-" Kakashi was interrupted when he found a razor sharp straight-edged longsword held directly in front of his throat.

"I am more than fit for shinobi work. It is your students that are not." Naruto began before slowly turning his eyes on Kakashi. Instantly, his amber orbs narrowed and grew cold. "You, along with many other shinobi of considerable influence in their lives, have been coddling them. The life of a shinobi is not about glory. It's not about being famous. It's not about money or women. The life of a shinobi is one of death, blood, killing, deceit, theivery, manipulation. Your male student seeks only revenge against his older brother, which will lead him down a path that will undoubtedly result in him betraying Konoha for more power. Your female student seeks only the Uchiha's affection and simply refuses to take her chosen career seriously, which will result in either her death, the death of others around her, or a fate worse than death itself. As for myself, you've seen what I can do first-hand. Now, which one out of the three of us will survive the longest?"

"..." Kakashi didn't answer while Naruto removed his sword from Kakashi's neck, sheathed the five foot long blade, and crossed his arms over his chest while nodding towards the chair set before the Hokage's desk. Shaken up and mentally disoriented, Kakashi found himself unable to disobey and sat down.

"Look, I'm sick of transferring all the time just because my team mates get scared of a little blood. So, I'm not transferring. It's too much trouble." Naruto responded calmly and slowly, wanting to make sure Kakashi understood what he was trying to say. "By transferring so much, not only am I denied the ability to participate in the Chuunin Exams that year like I had been denied for the past two years from transferring teams, the team I'm put with and the team I left are denied as well. Thus, Konoha's _precious_ fucking Uchiha won't be able to become a chuunin should I transfer; if the damn brat's even lucky enough to survive...Anyways, I'm going to stick around with Team 7 until after the Chuunin Exams before being removed from your team, whether I'm promoted or not. After that, you'll never have to deal with me again. Sound good?"

"Y-Yeah..." Kakashi muttered with a shaky nod. Snorting at the man's mental state, Naruto glanced at the Sandaime, wordlessly suggesting a psyche evaluation for the jounin. Naruto then bowed to the Sandaime slightly in departure, making his way to the door a moment later. Pausing just as he grabbed the door handle, Naruto decided to leave Kakashi with a few more parting words. "Just so you know, I may look like a monster, but I'm more human than you think. Why else would I fight so hard to keep others from having to stain their hands with blood?"

Without waiting for a response, Naruto left the office and then left the administrative building; he never showed it, but talking about his fallen kin always plucked at his heart-strings. It was their greatest strength and also their greatest weakness. The Kurotsuki, like all of the other Shishisensou clans, were the most brutal fighters because they wanted to delay the young having to stain their hands with the blood of others. Because of it, it became the downfall of many Shishisensou, but it was an honorable death that many would pray to recieve before going into battle. That belief gave them unwaivering determination which gifted them with a great fire that fueld their tenacity and feroucity, allowing them to slay dozens, if not hundreds, by themselves with every battle just because they didn't want another to suffer the horrors of taking someone's life...

As he stepped outside, Naruto closed his eyes and inhaled deeply through his nose, relaxing completely as the myriad scents of nature soothed his mind and body. Exhaling slowly, Naruto opened his eyes back up and started walking, ignoring the looks of fear and disgust he was getting from those he passed. He had grown up with them and was often 'hunted' as a child by those seeking to kill the last of the 'monsters'. He found it all rather amusing, yet ironic. They sought to kill the only monster that wished to protect them, to give his very life for them in order to ensure they lived to see the next sunrise.

"Ookami-kun!" A female called out from behind him, making him pause while his ears perked up slightly. Glancing over his shoulder, Naruto found the source running in his direction while waving at him; Hyuuga Hinata. She was one of the scarce few people that saw Naruto for _who_ he was, not _what_ he was.

Standing at 5'6", Hinata's dark indigo hair was waist-length and pulled forward to hang over her left shoulder in a smooth glossy curtain, her skin was a pale light cream in color and free of blemish, and her eyes were a soft shade of lavender unlike the usual stark white pupil-less eyes of the Hyuuga clan. She was dressed in a pair of baggy black pants, a black short-sleeve skin-tight top under her incredibly baggy lavender hoodie that had white sleeves and lavender cuffs, black kunoichi sandals on her feet, and her hitai-ate tied around her neck on a black cloth. Like usual, she had the hood pulled over her head and her hands were hidden by the cuffs of her sleeves.

"Phew...I thought I would never find you..." Hinata muttered as she paused to catch her breath, one hand resting on her chest. Taking a deep breath, Hinata looked up at him and smiled cheerfully. They had first met when they were kids and after hanging around him long enough, Hinata eventually lost her stutter and learned to stand up for herself. Mostly because Naruto had been rather scary and intimidating even back when he was only six years old with Hinata being five at the time. Because of the impact he had left on her life, Hinata had started developing her own Gentle Fist style and was even working on her elemental affinity of Water, despite the fact she had only become a genin a little less than two months ago.

"You...were looking for me? I wasn't aware I was even being sought out..." Naruto muttered quietly, scratching under his chin out of confusion. Hinata stared up at him blankly before giggling happily, her eyes squeezed shut and face divided by a broad grin. She then threw her arms around his waist as best as she could and hugged him with all her might, though it wasn't much when compared to Naruto's. Smiling faintly, Naruto gently placed a hand on Hinata's back, returning the gesture in his own way. "I've missed you, too. How have you been?"

"I've been good. Oh! I finally came up with a name for my new technique!" Hinata exclaimed with limitless energy that was barely suppressed by her own body. Naruto could only chuckle at her reaction, internally wondering if it was a good thing she had finally opened up to people. "I call it Gentle Step Twin Lion Fist."

"Oh? A new one, you say?" Naruto remarked as he started walking down the road while Hinata nodded, falling in step beside him as she stuffed her hands in the pockets of her hoodie. "I would like to see it some time. Plus, I could prove useful in its development. It's a lot easier to refine taijutsu against another shinobi than it is against a wooden training post."

"Y-Yeah. You've got a point there." Hinata remarked sheepishly, her cheeks gaining a light pink coloring to them as she turned her eyes down to the ground, biting her bottom lip with a shy smile. For the past few years now, she had developed a crush on the wolf-man beside her, but she just couldn't bring herself to confess. Every time she tried, something interrupted her or she just completely lost all of her courage, reverting back to how she used to be prior to befriending Naruto. "W-Would you like t-to help m-me out with it to...tomorrow?"

"...I would love to, Hinata, but I've got something to do tomorrow." Naruto responded, making Hinata sigh heavily before stepping in front of her towering friend, glaring up at him with her hands on her hips.

"I thought I told you to stop scaring everyone. You're never going to make friends if you keep scaring them off." Hinata chastised, succeeding only in making Naruto give her a flat look, blinking out of slight confusion. It wasn't like he was getting another transfer or anything. Naruto sighed and raised his left hand, dropping it on top of the Hyuuga heiress's head and smiling faintly.

"I've got you, don't I? That's plenty for me." Naruto responded as he walked around her, his words and gesture making Hinata blush heavily before she recomposed herself and turned, running slightly to catch up to him. Truth be told, he honestly wished he had more friends, but he wasn't lying. Hinata was the only friend he honestly needed. Besides, it wasn't like he could exactly restrain himself in combat. He was, in more ways than one, an instinctual animal.

"Yeah, but still! You need more than _one_ friend, Ookami-kun." She responded while stuffing her hands back in the pockets of her hoodie, peering up at Naruto from his right side. "I mean, if everyone is afraid of you, then they aren't going to be so willing to help you out when you're in trouble. Papa says the Council has been trying to find a reason to lock you up. They say you're too much of a 'loose cannon' or something like that."

"That's only because they know that they can't control me just like they couldn't control my clan." Naruto remarked gruffly, rolling his eyes at Hinata's comment. The Councils have had it out for his people for years. Up until their 'extinction' during the Kyuubi attack, the Councils had hated his kin because not a single one could be controlled by any means. Bribery and blackmail was pointless and ended up with people being 'broken', using hostages only ended in a lot of people dying, and threatening one's life was an even greater moronic idea; most of them lived for the sake of fighting. Hell, genjutsu barely worked on them and that was only possible through the use of doujutsu, but even then, it was a gamble. The effectiveness of the genjutsu usually depended on what branch family the Shishisensou came from, but that didn't matter anymore.

He was the last one...

"Well, this is my stop." Naruto muttered as they came to a stop at the gates to his clan's compound. Unlike other compound walls that were only about ten to twenty feet tall, the walls of the Shishisensou clan compound were easily fifty feet tall and made of solid granite with steel rebar reinforcements and even a large array of seals on top of that. Scattered all throughout the compound were great trees with a thick leafy canopy that hid everything below them and the gates were solid metal and just as tall as the walls, making it impossible for someone to spy on them through normal means. Now, only Naruto lived there and still maintained the compound during his spare time, finding the task relaxing and soothing even though it reminded him, daily, that his family and clansmen were no longer alive.

"...Do you have to go?" Hinata whined while grabbing onto Naruto's hand with both of her own, staring up at him. Her pupil-less lavender eyes were filled with honest heartbreak, having never liked leaving Naruto alone, especially when it involved leaving him alone in the Shishisensou compound. He idly recalled when they had first met; she had dragged him home and practically begged her father to let her 'keep him'. Luckily, the man said no, but that they could still be friends. Sighing quietly, Naruto reached over with his other hand and gently pinched her nose with a slight smile, making Hinata squeak and cover her face with her sleeve-covered hands, blushing heavily as she glared at him fiercely.

"Hehe...We'll see each other again, Hinata. Don't worry." Naruto reassured before pushing her hood back and ruffling her hair, making Hinata blush more heavily and glare at him more heatedly, swatting his hand away before straightening her hair out and pulling her hood back up over her head. By the time she finished, Naruto had already made his escape, the gates groaning as they shut behind him.

"Mmnnn..." Hinata glared at the gates, her flushed cheeks puffing out as she stomped her foot in annoyance. Huffing, Hinata turned on her heel and left the area. It was always the same whenever he had to leave. Why couldn't he just say 'good bye' or 'good night' like a normal person?

As the gate shut behind him, Naruto could only stare at the expanse of homes lining the walls of the compound with a dead look in his eyes. In the center where the largest tree in the compound was set, the clan head's home had been built around the base of said tree and was four storeys tall. Now, it was Naruto's home, the sole survivor and the child of the fallen Shishisensou clan's leader. Entering his home, Naruto paused for a moment, listening to the deafening silence as he whispered quietly to the empty shadows that greeted him.

"I'm home..."

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Gatenga- Dual Revolving Fang

Gatenga: Jiyuusatsu- Dual Revolving Fang: Double Play

Gatenga: Ookamino Soukutsu- Dual Revolving Fang: Den of Wolves


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.

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Beasts of War

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Chapter Two

"Gatenga: Rooringu Sandaa!" Naruto called out as he and his Shadow Clone surged forward, rolling across the ground and kicking up dirt behind them as their steel-hard needle-like hair tore into the ground, propelling them forward. At the same time, Lightning chakra started to arc from one needle-like hair to the next, boosting their speed and making them an even deadlier ball of claws, fangs, and blades. Splitting up and flanking their target, both lycanthropic shinobi kicked off the ground, sending themselves into the air with rogue bolts of electricity shooting out from their revolving forms. As they impacted their target simultaneously, the training post was obliterated in an explosion of mulch, splinters, and dirt. As they moved away from the ruins of the post, Naruto stood up straight while his clone simply dispelled.

"...Still needs work..." Naruto remarked, small arcs of electricity still jumping across his furred body from the powerful build-up of static electricity. Rooringu Sandaa, or Rolling Thunder, was the same as Gatenga, only with the addition of Lightning Chakra coating his and his clone's body for added power and speed. As strong as it was, it hadn't reached its peak potential. He hoped to have it completed and mastered by the time the Chuunin Exams came around in two months.

"That was pretty impressive. Make's me wish I had a Lightning affinity." Inuzuka Hana spoke up from the edge of the clearing, having left her three canine companions back at the Inuzuka clan compound. Glancing at her over his right shoulder, Naruto smirked. Shaking his whole body to disperse the static discharge, Naruto turned around and faced the woman as she walked over to him. "Kaa-san will want to know about that one once it's finished since Gatenga is an Inuzuka clan technique and all. Then again, it wouldn't be the first time you've added another technique to our clan's library."

"Yeah, that's true..." Naruto remarked quietly as Hana came to a stop directly in front of him, their bodies separated by only inches of air. Slowly reaching up, Hana put her left hand on his chest and buried her fingers in his thick fur, smiling warmly as she leaned against him and rested her cheek on his chest. Smiling in return, Naruto gently wrapped his arms around her. "...Can't wait, huh?"

"What do you think?" Hana mumbled through his fur, inhaling through her nose and enjoying the ever-constant scent of the forest that clung to him. It had been two years since she pledged herself to him. They were simply waiting for Naruto to be promoted to chuunin or for his eighteenth birthday; either way, he was considered a full-fledged adult. That way, they could be together. Getting a little fiesty, Hana jumped up and forced Naruto to hold her as she wrapped her legs around his waist while her arms were looped around Naruto's neck and shoulders, grinning wolfishly at her chosen life-mate. "So, I hear you might be going solo after the exams, promoted or not. Mind shedding some light on the subject?"

"Only if you stand on your own two feet." Naruto countered, making Hana frown and reluctantly comply, crossing her arms over her chest and pouting slightly. It only made Naruto laugh slightly. "Since I've transferred from three teams already and would have transferred from a fourth if the Chuunin Exams weren't so close, me and the Sandaime have been looking through the shinobi rules and laws. We managed to come across a certain little stipulation that would make it possible for me to progress to Chuunin if I don't manage to get promoted during the exams."

"Don't forget you also fall under the Clan Restoration Act..." Hana growled with a beguiling grin, reaching up and caressing the side of Naruto's neck as he bowed his head down, their lips meeting in a loving kiss. A random thought passed through Naruto's mind as he recalled their first kiss, barely stopping himself from laughing at the rather comical sight of them trying to figure out how considering Naruto's wolf-like head and maw. Breaking apart a moment later, Hana's cheeks were dusted with a pink hue as she leaned against him fully, a content smile on her lips. A moment later, she had a bit of a hungry look in her eyes. "Since you're under the CRA, doesn't that mean you can have up to four wives?"

"...Yes, if I'm not mistaken." Naruto answered, scratching under his chin in thought before glancing down at her, an eye brow cocked curiously. "Why?"

"Oh, nothing..." Hana remarked, giving him a reassuring smile, but it was obvious he wasn't going to be fooled. Pouting, Hana rested her head against his chest again. "Oh, fine! I was thinking about what it would be like with another woman around..."

"Oh, really now?" Naruto remarked with a grin as he led Hana into the forest, finding a somewhat secluded spot before sitting down with Hana in his lap. "What happened to being so possessive of me?"

"Who said it was for you?" Hana remarked with another grin, glancing at him out of the corner of her eye, making Naruto laugh. A moment later, Hana joined in with him. After a few minutes, they managed to calm down and Hana turned around in his embrace, straddling him as she looked into his eyes, gently running her fingers through the fur along the side of Naruto's face and neck, a soft smile on her lips. "Seriously, though. I was thinking about your little Hyuuga friend. I wouldn't mind her joining us in a few years once she's a legal adult. Maybe if I'm feeling genorous, I'll let another one join so long as she proves herself worthy..."

"Oh? Already staking claim to the position as Alpha Female, are you?" Naruto asked teasingly, making Hana smile more playfully before they kissed again. This time, it lasted longer and it was more passionate. Moaning softly as they broke apart, Hana rested her head on his shoulder, burying her face against Naruto's neck.

"God, I can't wait any longer...I'm tired of being kept away from you." Hana whispered softly, idly running her fingers through the thick fur that covered Naruto's entire body. Naruto sighed softly and held her close, gently rubbing her lower back with one hand as he reached up and held the hand she had on his chest with his other. Almost instantly, she gripped his hand tightly, a single tear falling from her eye. "It's stupid. We shouldn't have to hide like this..."

"Shh. It's not much longer, Hana. Everything will be fine, okay?" Naruto whispered quietly as Hana held his hand as tight as possible. Reaching up a little higher, Naruto rubbed the back of Hana's neck and almost immediately, she melted against him with a look of peace on her face. He hated it when she got upset, especially if it made the normally kind-hearted and tough-skinned woman cry. That's when he thought of something to help distract her. "...You up for a little hunting? I didn't eat breakfast this morning and I haven't had lunch yet. Plus, it'll give me something to cook for dinner tonight...Just the two of us."

"Yeah, I guess..." Hana responded a little half-heartedly before looking up at Naruto with big, brown eyes. "...Do you promise? Just the two of us?"

"Of course, Hana." Naruto responded with a smile, gently kissing her forehead and making Hana blush with a shy smile. As they stood up, Naruto stretched slightly before they took to the branches in search of their quarry...

**xXxXxXx**

"Airon Erubou!" Naruto exclaimed as the fur around his left elbow became as strong as steel while bringing it around to strike Sasuke, who barely managed to substitute himself with a log before it made contact with the side of his head, the devastating blow completely destroying the top half of the log. Raising his armored right hand, Naruto caught Sakura's right shin as she tried to kick him from his right flank while he had been distracted with Sasuke. "Too slow. Hari Jizou!"

"Shit!" Sakura exclaimed while kicking off Naruto's arm with her other foot to break free just in time to avoid being stabbed in multiple places by the needles of sharpened and hardened fur sticking out from all over the werewolf's body. Sakura's eyes widened when she saw the needle-like hairs quiver faintly, prompting her to form a handseal rather hastily.

"Hari Jigoku!" Naruto called out before a hail storm of needles made from his own fur shot out in all directions, Sakura's body being replaced with a log just as it was turned into a pin cushion. Snorting, Naruto shook his body so that his fur returned to normal, his ears twitching and eyes smoothly gliding back and forth as he waited for his 'team mates' to attack again.

Hidden in the branches of a tree, Kakashi continued to watch them train together. It was three weeks until the start of the Chuunin Exams and they had been training together like they were now for the past three months. Naruto had struck a deal with Kakashi. Since the wolf-man wanted to know the jounin's legendary Raikiri, Naruto proposed to train Sasuke and Sakura as best as he could before the Chuunin Exams. Surprisingly, the jounin accepted the deal. What stunned Kakashi was the fact it took Naruto only a few days to get a handle on the Raikiri and, if the rumors were right, he was already working on a variation of it.

"Katon: Housenka!" Sasuke called out as he ran a semi-circle behind Naruto from the giant's left to his right. At the same time, Sakura ran the opposite direction while throwing a large amount of kunai and shuriken at Naruto from in front of him. Smirking, Naruto swiftly brought his hands together in front of his chest while bowing his head with his eyes closed, almost as if he were praying. A moment later, his team mates learned that he wasn't.

"Doton: Kakougan Yamajiro!" Naruto called out as his eyes snapped open, causing a ring of granite to rise out of the ground all around Naruto and form a twenty foor tall column around him to protect him from the two attacks. The only reason he was using so many techniques was because he needed to get back into the habit of using ninjutsu on occassion as well to give Sakura and Sasuke a fighting chance. Ninjutsu never was his greatest strength, but the uniqueness of his ninjutsu was. Unlike others, who needed handseals, most of the techniques he knew had been mastered by the lycanthropic teen that he could perform most by simply manipulating the flow of his chakra within his body, but some still required the 'prayer' seal he had used to perform his Granite Mountain Castle defensive Earth Element technique.

Suddenly, the sound of rapidly moving metal grinding against stone could be heard...

"What the hell..." Sasuke and Sakura muttered simultaneously while Kakashi sighed. Big mistake on their part.

"Gatenga: Nigemichi no Pakku!" Came the call from within the hollow pillar before it was torn to shreds as Naruto and five clones burst forth, each one set ablaze with Fire and Lightning chakra as they tore into the earth with their steel-hard and needle-sharp fur and claws, splitting into two groups of three and speeding towards Sasuke and Sakura.

_'When did he come up with that one?!'_ Kakashi thought to himself in surprise, his one good eye widening as he watched them. He was half-tempted to uncover his Sharingan to break down the ninjutsu/taijutsu technique, but he decided not to. It was techniquely an advanced elemental clan technique of the Inuzuka, one of several that Naruto had made himself. That was the only draw-back the genin had when it came to learning their techniques; any variations were to be classified as Inuzuka clan techniques and if someone from the Inuzuka clan wanted to learn it, Naruto had to teach them. That's when a thought popped into Kakashi's head.

_'Only seventeen years old, not even a chuunin yet, and he's already got more on his plate than most jounin ever have. I'm impressed...'_ Kakashi mentally remarked with a look of approval on his masked face. Watching as Sasuke and Sakura frantically tried to dodge the electrified balls of flaming steel, Kakashi found Naruto to be skilled enough to be a jounin, but due to his constant transfers, his progression through the ranks had been stalled drastically. It had been about five months since they returned from the mission to Wave Country and Team 7 had actually started to grow attached to Naruto. So much so that they had all changed in both body and mind.

Kakashi had taken to wearing his old ANBU armor without his old Dog mask with a tanto sheathed across the back of his waist with the handle at his left hip and a ninjato crossing his back with the handle sticking out over his right shoulder. The jounin had even taken to training with Gai, of all people, on a regular basis whenever he wasn't busy with his students. Sasuke had gradually started to lose his 'lone avenger' attitude, becoming more along the lines of a cold and monotous shinobi not unlike Itachi once was prior to the Uchiha Massacre, only a little more talkative at times. Sakura had begun to lose her infatuation with Sasuke and take her training and career more seriously, deciding to become a field medic.

Standing at 5'11", 15 year old Uchiha Sasuke was dressed in a black skin-tight long-sleeve top, a black cloth face mask pulled up over his nose, white ANBU-styled bracers on his forearms with white armored plates covering the back of his hands, baggy black pants with white cloth wrapped around his legs from his knees down to his ankles, white ANBU-styled guards strapped to his shins, black closed-toe shinobi sandals on his feet, a set of white ANBU-styled body armor covering his torso with a black hood attached to the raised armored collar and pulled up over his head while the Uchiha symbol decorated the back of his armor, a belt of white armor plates around his waist with a knee-length half-cloak of black cloth hanging from it and a length of white cloth hanging down to his knees from the buckle in the front, and a Konoha hitai-ate tied around his neck on a band of black cloth. Strapped to either thigh was a pair of kunai holsters, a set of four weapon pouches attached to his belt behind his waist, a number of hidden spring-loaded kunai launchers built into the underside of his bracers, a couple more kunai hidden in his shin-guards, and two more pairs of kunai holsters stashed horizontally under his body armor in the back along his lower back.

Sasuke had taken to Naruto's taijutsu and ninjutsu training like a fish to water. Kakashi couldn't remember how many times he had taken the black haired adolescent to the hospital after their training sessions. Most of the trips were caused by Sasuke's arrogance and hunger for power. In the beginning, he would only perform a technique a few times before demanding another from Naruto. Naruto's response? Pummel Sasuke into a bloody pulp until the Uchiha was knocked out or until he surrendered. It took about two weeks of that before Sasuke got the point that he was to actually learn the techniques _without_ his Sharingan and to master them to a certain degree before he _earned_ another one. The same went with his taijutsu training, which was rather harsh. He had brought Gai along with him one day to spy on Naruto's taijutsu training and even the spandex-wearing jounin was a little worried for the Uchiha's safety and health.

Standing at only 5'3", 15 year old Haruno Sakura had waist-length cherry blossom pink hair styled into an undershave strangely enough with her long hair twisted into a braid in the back that ended half-way down her back with her bangs framing her face and bright emerald green eyes. Four scars ran along the left side of her head and came to a stop just before they reached her left eye. Like always, she was wearing a pair of baggy black pants, a dark red midriff-baring sleeveless turtleneck top stretched tight across her C-cup bust with a white ring in the center of her upper back and the middle of her chest, a short-sleeve fishnet top under her shirt, black elbow-length gloves on her forearms and hands, black sandals on her feet, two pouches strapped to either thigh with one of each pair being filled with kunai or senbon, a medical bag set across her lower back, a weapon pouch on either side of her medical bag, and a white sash wrapped around her waist with one end hanging down to her knees in the front. Tied around her neck on a band of dark crimson cloth was her Konoha hitai-ate.

Sakura was a completely different problem on her own. Before he started to train her, Naruto had first broken her spirit. Kakashi didn't know what happened, but Naruto had taken Sakura out of the village for one week. When they left, Sakura was a weak, naive, and pathetic little girl. When they came back, Sakura was a strong-willed, focused, and calm young woman. Neither she nor Naruto would speak of what happened during that week, not even to the Sandaime or even answer as to where Sakura's scars came from. Either way, Sakura was focused solely on getting stronger.

"Raiton: Shichuu Shibari!" Came the twin declarations before both Sasuke and Sakura cried out in agony as they were electrocuted by the technique utilized by Naruto and his clone, who had downgraded the usually large-scale technique so that it could be more easily performed on shinobi instead of summons. After a few moments, Naruto and his clone released the techniques, letting the two collapse as steam rose from their painfully numbed bodies and slightly singed clothes. As his clone dispelled and the stone pillars sunk back into the ground, Naruto raised his left hand and waved Kakashi over slightly without turning to face the jounin, signaling that the session was over.

"So? Are they ready?" Kakashi inquired as he landed in a kneeling crouch beside the sole surviving member of the Kurotsuki branch family of the Shishisensou clan. Narrowing his eyes faintly in thought, Naruto crossed his arms over his chest and glanced between Sasuke and Sakura, who were already forcing themselves back to their feet with a look of determination in their eyes despite the pain and numbness coursing through their bodies.

"...They haven't reached my expectations..." Naruto answered calmly, trailing off at the end as he awaited a reaction from the two in question. Almost instantly, he noticed a fire ignite in their eyes; it wasn't exactly anger and it wasn't really arrogance, but more of a blend of the two with a calm and patient appearance to it. Good. They weren't letting their pride take control and were showing humility. "...But they're ready."

"Really?" Kakashi muttered as he took another look at his students. He wasn't doubting Naruto, it was just that he hadn't had much time to evaluate his own students in the past couple months due to Naruto training them almost every day, most of the time taking them to an isolated location for certain things. They hadn't even done that many missions, either. That's what they were going to have to work on during the next three weeks in order to meet the minimum D-rank requirements.

"Yeah." Naruto muttered before addressing the two runts in front of him. "Oi! Thing One and Thing Two!"

"..." Neither responded, but they visibly tensed. Naruto usually only called them that before he ambushed them with a taijutsu-only spar that would last anywhere between an hour to two days; non-stop. Their reactions only made Naruto smirk, barely stopping himself from snickering. He loved scarring them too much...

"...Go ahead and get some rest. You've earned it." Naruto responded firmly, but out of approval. Sakura heaved a sigh of relief as she sunk to her knees and slouched while Sasuke just dropped to the ground, lying on his back and staring up at the partly cloudy sky with unfocused eyes. Kakashi couldn't help it; he bust out laughing at their reactions. He knew Naruto had been running them ragged for three months now, but he didn't think they were _that_ tired! Kakashi shut up and froze when he felt Naruto's gaze peering down at him, the cyclopian shinobi having stayed crouching since he arrived. "...You're next, Scarecrow."

"Uh...What?" Kakashi responded with a nervous eye smile, sweating slightly. Naruto gained a small, but vicious fanged smirk, his eyes gleaming with vicious and obviously violent intent to cause physical harm to the jounin.

"I've been meaning to get myself a new chew-toy..." Naruto growled quietly before suddenly lunging at the jounin, only for Kakashi to just barely escape the Shishisensou's grasp. Snarling almost rabidly, Naruto chased after Kakashi on all fours, the one-eyed running as fast as he could to escape the giant's wrath. "GET BACK HERE!"

**xXxXxXx**

"Hiya, Boss!" Konohamaru exclaimed as he landed on top of Naruto's head, making the lycanthrope's eyes narrow while his left eye brow twitched out of annoyance. He wasn't alone either; hanging from either arm was the Sandaime's grandson's two best friends, Udon and Moegi. Growling quietly, Naruto shook the three brats off of him and kept walking; he still hadn't been able to catch Kakashi in the past three weeks and it was getting annoying. How dare he laugh at his training methods?! A groan from Konohamaru made Naruto snort, hoping that ignoring the boy would make them go away. "Man, that hurt, Boss. You're no fun today..."

"Yeah..." Moegi mumbled as she rubbed her head. As they all ran ahead of him, Konohamaru turned and blew a raspberry at the giant wolf-man, only furthering Naruto's irritation. Luckily, they were leaving him alone now and disappeared around a corner. Thank Kami...

"OW!" Naruto's ears perked up at Konohamaru's cry of pain and surprise before hearing someone else. "That hurt, you little shit!"

"Aw, _hell_ no..." Naruto snarled under his breath as his eyes narrowed fiercely. In two large steps, Naruto reached the intersection and his gaze instantly targeted the one holding Konohamaru by the boy's scarf; a young man about his own age wearing a black one-piece outfit with dark purple kabuki paint on his face, a bandaged up package strapped to his back. Beside him was a blonde haired woman about the same age in a lavender skirt and top with fishnets and a giant battle fan slung across her back. Growling angrily as his hands and feet were encased with the metal armor of his bracers and shin-guards, Naruto took a step toward them, purposefully stomping on the ground to gain the face-painted runt's attention. "Put. The kid. Down."

"Wha-What the hell?!" Kankuro stuttered out in shock, dropping the brat that had run into him and taking an involuntary step back. Temari, hearing her brother's exclamation, turned to look in his direction, only to notice the towering beast standing there as the three kids ran behind him.

_'Oh, my god...That's Konoha's Iron Wolf...'_ Temari mentally wrasped out in shock and fear. She had heard stories about a Konoha shinobi that was rumored to be a werewolf of some kind. Others even whispered about him being one of the legendary Shishisensou. She used to scoff and say it was just all lies and false rumors, but now that she was standing in the very presence of that being, Temari couldn't help but shiver in fear, her teal eyes wide and frightened. Surprisingly, almost as soon as Konohamaru's feet touched the ground and the young boy was safely standing behind him, Konoha's 'Iron Wolf' visibly relaxed.

"State your purpose for being here, Suna-nin." Naruto growled out, his eyes still locked on Kankuro. He knew who they were; they were two of the Yondaime Kazekage's three children, but that didn't matter to him. He wished nothing more than to rip apart anyone that would blatantly intend to harm an innocent child. Kazekage's son or not, 'puppet boy' wasn't going to be spared. He idly wondered where the third one, Suna's Ichibi jinchuuriki, was at...

"W-We're here for the Chuunin Exams that are b-being held tomorrow." Temari stated, stuttering slightly as she handed Naruto her passport, which bore a stamp of red ink that identified her reason for being in Konoha. Snorting, he handed it back to her. "We g-got here a bit early and decided to walk around for a bit."

"I guess we'll be seeing each other again soon..." Naruto growled, smirking viciously as he stared down at Kankuro, who looked about ready to piss himself. Oh, he was enjoying the Suna puppeteer's fear way too much. "I'll be seeing you there, Subaku no Temari. You too, _Kankuro_..."

"..." Kankuro said nothing as he shivered slightly, his face paling with fear as he forced a small smile on his face out of nervousness. As he turned to leave while ushering the kids down a different path, Naruto's eyes locked with those of another that was hidden in the trees, both intrigued by the aura of unrestrained power they both contained. Breaking eye contact and growling at Konohamaru, who was starting to talk trash to the Suna shinobi, Naruto led them down the main road...

**xXxXxXx**

"Hey! Hey, did you hear?" Rock Lee inquired with some excitement in his voice. "For the first time in five years, there are going to be rookies in this year's Chuunin Exams."

"No way!" Tenten dismissed as he continued to play with the kunai in her hand. "It's probably some stubborn jounins competing against each other or something..."

"No, the story is that three of them are student's of Hatake Kakashi." Lee continued, only for his voice to grow quieter and more serious just as Tenten moved to throw her kunai. "One of them is _him_..."

"...What?" Tenten hissed quietly, her kunai missing the target completely. Her hand quivered faintly in both fear and anticipation. Even their third team mate, Hyuuga Neji, became rather unsettled at the revelation. All three of them had come in contact with that particular genin at one point in time and they all knew they didn't stand a chance against him. At least, they didn't in the past.

"Yeah. Not only that, but rumor has it that he's been training his team mates for the past few months." Lee continued, making Tenten clench her still extended hand into a tight fist while Neji's left hand tensed and suddenly balled up into a fist as well, a thin and narrow scar marring the palm and back of his hand; he had been stabbed through his hand by the Shishisensou's sword during a rather vicious 'spar' between them.

"Kami, have mercy on their souls..." Neji whispered under his breath, refering to those that encountered Naruto and his team mates during the exams. Especially if his team mates had inherited anything from the rumored Iron Wolf of Konoha...

**xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx**

Gatenga: Rooringu Sandaa- Dual Revolving Fang: Rolling Thunder

Airon Erubou- Iron Elbow

Hari Jizou- Underworld Guardian Spikes

Hari Jigoku- Hell Needles

Katon: Hosenka- Fire Element: Mythical Fire Pheonix

Doton: Kakougan Yamajiro- Earth Element: Granite Mountain Castle

Gatenga: Nigemichi no Pakku- Dual Revolving Fang: Pack of Hellhounds

Raiton: Shichuu Shibari- Lightning Element: Four Pillar Binding


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.

**xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx**

Beasts of War

**xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx**

Chapter Three

"Hey, you guys are quite noisy. I suggest you quiet down before you draw too much attention to yourselves. Attention is not something you want in this sort of situation." A silver haired genin with glasses told them as he walked up to the group of rookie genin, plus one veteran. "I'm guessing this is your first time taking the Chuunin Exams, eh?"

"And just who are you?" Naruto growled out, stepping in front of the man before he could get any closer to his team; if there was one thing everyone knew about him, it was the fact Naruto was violently protective of anyone close to him. That now included his team mates, who were friends with the others from their graduating class. Not only that, the silver haired man stunk of serpent. Naruto wrinkled his nose slightly at the scent; such disgusting little bastards.

"Ah, where are my manners? I'm Yakushi Kabuto and this is my seventh time taking the Chuunin Exams." He introduced. Inuzuka Kiba and Chouji cracked a couple jokes about the number of times he had taken the Exams, but Naruto was extremely suspicious of the man. If there was one thing he knew best, it was that snakes weren't ever to be trusted.

"Do you have information on individuals?" Kiba inquired, casting a glance at Naruto. Kabuto nodded, waiting for Kiba to state a name in specific. "Kurotsuki Naruto."

"Hm, let's see. Ah, here we are." Kabuto mumbled out as he revealed the information he had on Naruto. "Kurotsuki Naruto. He's tranferred from three different teams since he became a genin and is currently a member of Team 7, comprised of himself, Uchiha Sasuke, and Haruno Sakura under Hatake Kakashi. Mission history: 24 D-rank completed, 13 C-rank completed, 1 B-rank completed, and 3 A-rank completed. Wow. His taijutsu is incredibly high, he's rumored to have a natural healing factor, and an incredibly high pain tolerance that allows him to shrug off almost any attack that manages to get through his rumored 'Iron Fur' technique. His ninjutsu is incredibly strong for a genin and his genjutsu is unknown, most likely non-existent. He's also very proficient in kenjutsu and known to use a pair of longswords."

"Is that all?" Kiba asked, internally angry and jealous with the giant genin; it wasn't a secret to Kiba or his mother, Tsume, that Naruto and Hana were in love. Kiba was one of the few that knew of their relationship and he despised the towering wolf-man for it. What made it even worse was the fact their mother was actually encouraging it! Kabuto shook his head before drawing a second card and revealing its information.

"There's more. Hm. That's interestesting. According to the most recent Bingo Book, Kurotsuki Naruto, nicknamed Konoha's Iron Wolf by some, is known to be the last living member of the Shishisensou clan and has been the cause of death for a little over seven hundred people in the past two years." Kabuto would have read more had Naruto not drawn one of his swords with his left hand and speared the tip of the blade into the ground directly in front of Kabuto with a downward thrust, destroying the cards on himself and the rest of the genin's deck.

"You seem to know quite a bit about me, Yakushi Kabuto. I don't like that." Naruto snarled as he grabbed the man by the neck with his right hand and pinned him to the wall. Kabuto suddenly felt afraid for his life, desperately clawing at the massive hand constricting his throat. A deep growl rumbled in his chest as he barely resisted the urge to tear the man apart, but Naruto was interrupted when a scarred hand almost as big as his own pried his fingers away from Kabuto's throat while five chuunin proctors 'held' his arms, legs, and waist.

"Knock it off or you're disqualified!" Ibiki snapped at the two before turning to Naruto. "You know the rules, Dog Boy, so follow them!"

"_Wolf_, not dog..." Naruto snarled as he brushed off the group of chuunin with ease despite the fact most were holding him with all their strength. "But fine. I'll wait."

"Do it again and I'm kicking you _and_ your team out of the Exams!" Ibiki snarled as he leaned in close so that their faces were only inches apart and their eyes level, secretly hesitant to get so close to the genin. Just barely teetering on the edge of becoming a legal adult and the Kurotsuki didn't even show a hint of fear. Many grown adults and veteran shinobi that never even met him feared the head of the Torture and Interrogation ANBU Division, but yet there was an entire page in the Bingo Book of each Hidden Village dedicated to Naruto; crossing the young man's profile picture was a single warning in bold, red letters.

_**Do not engage!**_

"Hmph. Agreed." Naruto growled, backing down only because he didn't want to ruin his chances of being promoted to chuunin rank. Again. Naruto smirked slightly at the scarred jounin, finding the man's anger...amusing. Taking a step back, Naruto sheathed his sword as he returned to his team...

**xXxXxXx**

Dissatisfied with the results of the first test, Naruto glanced around at the rather sizable crowd of genin standing out in front of the gate to Training Ground 44, the Forest of Death. He grinned slightly, wondering how things would turn out in this 'dangerous' place. If anything or anyone tried to harm his team, Naruto would show them who the Alpha really was and tear them down to the bottom of the food chain. He may not exactly like them, but they were still under his protection up until they reached a point in the exams where it was no longer a team-based test, but solo-combat or a free-for-all. By that point, they were on their own...

"You'll soon see why it's called the Forest of Death." Mitarashi Anko explained while Naruto snorted dismissively, crossing his arms over his chest while closing his eyes, his swords having been sealed away due to the first test being a written exam while his hands, forearms, feet, and shins were covered in his armor; he found himself using Yasei no Kiba Moodo a lot more than Surudoikiba Moodo lately. Odd.

"Hmph. I've seen scarier places than this over-grown garden..." Naruto growled out, intentionally wanting to antagonize the woman. Hearing his words, Anko drew a kunai and threw it at him before chasing after it. That was when Naruto's eyes snapped open and he caught the kunai handle in his teeth, spinning around the woman and wrapping his arms around her in what could have easily become a bone-crushing bear hug, the kunai blade only a few milimeters from touching her neck. "...but nothing as fiesty as you."

"Ngh...Damn it, Naruto! Let me go, you stupid brute!" Anko hissed, squirming in his arms in an attempt to free herself, but to no result. Laughing as he let her go, Naruto passed the kunai back to her. Pouting childishly, Anko snatched the kunai out of his hand before crossing her arms over her chest and turning her back on him. "...Jerk..."

"Hn." Naruto grinned fiendishly, showing off the fang-like teeth housed in his muzzle. Anko barely kept herself from blushing as she remembered the night when they ran into each other in the Forest of Death. She had been given the fright of her life that night, among other things. "Now, don't you have some rules to explain?"

"I'll get you back for that, you jerk..." Anko hissed at him before stomping back to the small shed and picking up a stack of papers. "Alright, I need each of you to sign these liability waivers. If you don't, you can't participate in the second test!"

"What the hell was all of that about, Naruto? Do you know her?" Sakura questioned, giving him a suspicious look. Naruto simply smirked wickedly as he glanced down at her.

"Something like that." Naruto replied. Sasuke, catching on to what Naruto really meant, couldn't stop the faint blush from forming on his cheeks as he palmed his face. Naruto laughed at the Uchiha's reaction before cracking his knuckles and neck, his eyes gleaming with feral abandon as he anticipated a chance to finally cut loose for once. It had been awhile since he last got to maul someone. If he recalled right, the last time had been back in Wave Country...

"Here." Sasuke stated quietly and coldly, his voice cutting into Naruto's thoughts as the Uchiha shoved their Earth scroll into Naruto's hands a few moments later before making sure he had all of his equipment on him. "You're the strongest one and you have the intimidation factor, meaning our chances of passing go up so long as you hold onto our scroll and everyone knows it. It also makes you a bigger target, meaning people might try to eliminate us, bringing up our chances of getting the Heaven scroll and lessening the competition once the Second Exam is over."

"Heh. Smart thinking." Naruto growled back in reply as he stuffed the scroll in a leather pouch on his belt, a blood thirsty glint shining in his amber eyes as he anticipated much blood shed. Going to their assigned gate, Naruto forced himself to take a deep breath and calm down. It wouldn't do him any good to go completely feral. Maybe a little, but not yet and only if he gets the chance to fight...

"BEGIN!" Anko called out over the speakers set up at each gate as said gates were thrown open by the chuunin proctors standing guard at each set. Charging in, Sasuke and Sakura took to the trees along the river's edge while Naruto dove into a roll, something that was somewhat expected of him from his team mates. He had a tendency to prefer using his Tenga technique instead of taking to the tree branches or going by foot. He said it wasn't as 'fun' as his Tenga...

"Tenga!" Naruto exclaimed, his fur hardening and sharpening to the point of being almost like steel as he took off, purposefully slowing down so that his team mates could keep up with him...

**xXxXxXx**

"AAAAHHHH!" The scream echoed through the dense forest, informing all who heard that someone had most likely died. Painfully.

"Heh. This test is getting interesting." Naruto mumbled as he tore off another mouthful of deer liver and swallowed it whole. Sasuke and Sakura remained quiet as they ate their rations. They were hidden in the tree branches while Naruto stayed out in the open on the ground, feasting on the small deer he had caught just before they decided to stop for rest. He didn't have to worry about stealth when it was almost impossible for the average genin to sneak up on him now that he had everyone's scent memorized from the first test. His team mates weren't so keen, however, meaning they had to keep hidden to avoid detection.

"Hn." Naruto grunted out in amusement before tearing off another bite from the liver, swallowing it as Sasuke and Sakura dropped down from the tree. Cocking an eye brow, Naruto glanced at them before Sasuke nodded off to the side. Having left Sasuke in charge for the remainder of the Second Exam to test the Uchiha, Naruto could only sigh, mentally whining about wasting such good venison. Growling quietly, Naruto pulled out a scroll with an empty storage seal on it and sealed the partially eaten deer carcass in order to save it for later. He got looks of confused curiousity from his team mates, making him snort. "I'm not wasting good food, damn it..."

"..." Sakura only sighed and shook her head before they went about their way again...

**xXxXxXx**

"Orders?" Naruto asked teasingly, keeping his voice low so as not to be over-heard by their followers. The only response Sasuke gave to acknowledge he had heard the wolf-man was the Uchiha's right hand clenching into a fist; that was the single for 'Kill'. Grinning, Naruto tensed his legs before backflipping a considerable distance with surprising agility for a person of his size as he formed a Shadow Clone in mid-air, both quickly curling into a ball as they coated their bodies with Earth chakra, causing their fur to harden and stick out in every direction like sharp steel needles; his Tetsuno Kegawa was the perfect offense/defense ninjutsu when coupled with his favorite technique. "Gatenga!"

"What the-" One of the Iwa genin tailing them exclaimed as Naruto and his clone landed behind them, the two rapidly spinning balls of fangs quickly closing in on them. Forming a few handseals, the genin ducked down while thrusting his right fist into the ground, forming a ramp of earth in front of him that would make the rolling beast sail over him. "Doton: Moruoka!"

"Doton: Kengan!" The second male genin from Iwa called out as his right hand and forearm became incased in stone, which he swiftly brought down to crush the ball of needle-hairs, only for Naruto to suddenly stop and roll around him in a quarter-circle so that the genin's fist harmlessly struck the ground in front of him while Naruto was now crouched on all fours directly to the genin's left. At the same time, his clone stopped spinning and landed in a handstand a few feet away from the other male, intending to reverse his trajectory to attack again.

"Renji! Kira!" Their female team mate called out before throwing a handful of kunai at either lycan, forcing them to dodge to the side even though Naruto was confident his Iron Fur would protect him from the blades; he wasn't one to take risks, though. Jumping to the side to avoid possible injury, both Naruto and his clone rolled forward once more with another round of Gatenga, this time being joined by a second pair of clones. Upon seeing this, the two males regrouped with their female team mate, who was already going through handseals for another ninjutsu technique. "Doton: Iwano Rotou!"

Circling the group of Iwa genin as a ring of jagged rocks rose around them and created a temporary defensive barrier, Naruto and his clones contemplated their next move. Growling fiercely, him and his three clones suddenly caught fire as electricity coated their bodies. Turning around and moving away from the dome, all four made a U-turn and headed straight for the dome of jagged rocks at full speed.

"Gatenga: Nigemichi no Pakku!" Naruto and his clones exclaimed at the same time just before they made contact with the dome, the heat and electricity easily letting them cut through the stone and clash against each other before revolving in a circle within the surprisingly spacious defensive technique, the armored knuckles of their left hands grinding together to keep them from falling out of allignment. Over the shriek of metal on metal, the tortured cries of pain and death were heard from the three Iwa genin trapped within their own technique. All that could be seen through the dark holes left in the dome were flames, arcs of Lightning chakra, and sparks spitting from their gauntlets grinding together.

A momenter later, they went silent and their killers stopped. While Naruto's clones dispelled, he stood up swiftly and broke through the ceiling of rock before rabidly clawing at the stone, tearing out large chunks of the material until he could easily move around. It took a moment, but after checking the remains of the three genin, Naruto found their scroll; a Heaven scroll.

"Got it!" Naruto called out as he pocketed the item, hopping over the ridge of stone that surrounded the corpses and walking over to his team mates. "It's another Heaven scroll. That makes three of each. As much as I like hunting, I suggest we get moving. There's only three more days in the exam."

"You've got a point." Sasuke muttered before glancing at the sky. It was nearing mid-afternoon. "We'll go as far as we can as fast as we can before sundown. After that, we'll find a spot to hide and rest for six hours. By midnight, we'll head out once more. That way, we won't encounter anyone else since they'll all be resting."

"Alright. Let's move." Sakura agreed as she turned and started walking. Before Sasuke could follow after her, Naruto gently grabbed the Uchiha's arm, holding him back for a moment.

"You're learning. Just remember to keep that state of mind, even in the hottest of battles." Naruto advised before starting to walk after Sakura. "It'll save your life one of these days."

"..." Sasuke was silent as his black eyes stared at Naruto's back. For a moment, his Sharingan flared to life in his eyes, only to fade away just as fast as they had appeared...

**xXxXxXx**

"...What was that?" Uzumaki Naomi muttered, having heard something in the distance. Her team mates simply gave her a look of confusion.

Standing at 5'4", Naomi had golden blonde hair that reached half-way down her back in a high pony-tail with her chin-length bangs framing her face, bright blue eyes, and sun-tanned skin. Like usual, she was dressed in a black and orange camouflage skin-tight leotard that greatly hugged her D-cup breasts, a pair of baggy black pants that hung off her broad hips with a black leather belt to keep them from falling while the leggings were tucked into her polished black knee-high combat boots, a pair of black fingerless elbow-length gloves with an orange ring on the palms and on the back of her hands, and a black leather jacket tied around her waist that bore a red swirl design on the back.

"What are you talking about, Naomi?" Her team mate, Inazuma Thor, muttered. Thor's parents had defected from Kumo back during the last war and fled to Konoha. Like them, he was incredibly talented in Raiton techniques. He was also an expert with a warhammer.

Standing at 5'11" with a lean muscular build, Thor had feathery golden blonde hair that bled into scarlet at the tips that he kept pulled back and put up in a short and tight pony tail that appeared like the tail feathers of a peacock. Blocky lines of red were tattooed to his cheeks and arms while his eyes were a stormy grey with flecks of golden yellow in them. He was wearing a dark green sleeveless top with dark grey leather armor over his chest and stomach that had golden markings on them, light grey hakama pants, black leather boots on his feet, dark grey leather elbow-length fingerless gloves on his forearms with the same golden markings as his body armor, a heavy long-handled warhammer grasped in his left hand that had the same golden markings as his armor on the flat sides of the hammer, and a blue hexagonal crystal hanging from a black string around his neck. Tied around his waist was his Konoha hitai-ate on a dark green band of cloth.

"I'm serious. I just heard something..." Naomi muttered, trying to identify the sound that seemed...familiar. The third member on their team, Kurozumi Hibara, stayed silent. Team 9 was the only genin team in Konoha to have two female members on it at the same time in almost fifteen years. There just happened to be a couple more girls to graduate that year.

Standing at 5'6", 15 year old Hibara had waist-length dark maroon hair with natural dark orange highlights twisted into a thick braid that ended at her lower back, skin the color of caramel, and fiery sun-fire orange eyes. Like usual, she was dressed in a pair of baggy dark crimson pants with a dark orange tribal flame design on the right pant-leg going from the cuff to her knee, a dark crimson sleeveless turtleneck top that conformed to her E-cup breasts like a second skin and left her toned stomach exposed with a dark orange tribal flame design covering the front and back of her top, a dark crimson cloth face mask pulled up over the bridge of her nose, a dark orange sash wrapped around her slim waist with one end hanging down to her knees in the front that had a dark crimson tribal flame design decorating the length of the cloth, a braided necklace of red and orange threads wrapped around her neck with a pair of three-inch long fangs hanging from it on either side of her throat, dark crimson fingerless elbow-length gloves on her forearms with dark orange tribal flame designs on them like the markings on her pant-leg and sash, dark crimson cloth wrapped around her feet and ankles that left her toes and heels uncovered, and her hitai-ate tied around his waist over the sash on a long strip of dark crimson cloth.

"...Wait a sec...I hear it too..." Thor whispered as he narrowed his eyes, gripping his hammer, Mjolnir, tighter as he got ready for a fight. Having a powerful bloodline aligned with Fire and Earth like most of her other family members, Hibara narrowed her orange eyes with caution as smoke started to rise from her gloved hands due to the Fire chakra gathering there.

**"ARRROOOOOOOOOO!"** The deafening howl echoed, a powerful gust of wind clawing at their clothes and the trees and fallen leaves. Unable to even hear themselves scream in pain, Team 9 fell to their knees while covering their ears as best as they could. Cracking an eye open and forcing herself to bite back the pain, Naomi looked up just in time to watch as a figure in biege and black clothing was sent flying through the air, crashing through several thick tree limbs before being lodged in a tree trunk. A moment later, the howling stopped.

"What the...What the hell was _that_?!" Thor hissed, checking his ears to make sure they weren't bleeding, something the others were doing as well. Naomi was unresponsive, her ears ringing.

"I don't know, but I have a feeling that we shouldn't be hear right now." Hibara muttered as she forced herself to her feet, grabbing Naomi under her arm and dragging the blonde to her feet as she reached over and snatched the back of Thor's top, pulling them behind her and in the opposite direction the two possibly still-fighting combants were located. "Come on, damn it! Let's go!"

"H-Hai..." Naomi muttered numbly before finally getting her footing, the three of them taking to the branches. Glancing back for a moment, Hibara swore she caught sight of some sort of solid metal wolf man, but shook it off as they kept moving.

**"Grrr...That fucking bastard..."** Naruto snarled under his breath as he flexed his armored hands, landing on a branch with a heavy thud. Unlike Yasei no Kiba and Surudoikiba, Zanninnakiba Moodo was a state even Naruto didn't particularly enjoy. It was also one of the two settings on his fuinjutsu-infused armor that affected his entire body. From head to toe, Naruto's body was covered in dull grey metal armor bearing unique designs imprinted upon the metal plates. His entire head was covered in a metal helmet shaped like a snarling wolf's head with two metal pieces that covered his ears, a set of fully articulated and mobile metal rings armored his tail all the way down to the tip, his feet were covered completely with metal sheathes over his claws, similar blade-like sheathes covering the claws on his hands, and metal objects attached to the back of his shoulders and on the back of his calves shaped much like a rectangular box of metal connected to his armor by the long side of the object, only they were relatively hollow with the entire bottom side open as incredibly hot air was expelled from them. **"Try to bite my team mate, will you? I'll make sure you never forget who the real fucking Alpha is..."**

"Kukukuku...My, my...It's been a long time since I've been in the presence of a Shishisensou. Especially an Armored Wolf of the royal Kurotsuki clan." Orochimaru stated calmly as he stepped out of the dust cloud created by his impact with the tree, wiping away the slight dribble of blood from his chin as he grinned. Naruto's eyes narrowed within his helmet at the mention of his classification as a Soukou no Ookami. No one knew about that. How could this traitor know what he was? "Hm? Did I say something wrong, Ookami-kun?"

**"Yeah...Where the hell did you find out about that?"** Naruto demanded angrily, his hands curling into fists once more. Orochimaru simply chuckled again while drawing a sword from his throat, openly taunting Naruto as he motioned for him to attack. Snarling, Naruto tensed his hands and wrists just right, causing a two-foot long double-edged blade to shoot out from the top of either of his armored forearms. A moment later, the four objects on his back and legs, dubbed Rockets by the Shishisensou that had created them years ago, started to expel seering blue flames before Naruto was launched from his spot and towards Orochimaru. **"TELL ME, YOU MONGREL!"**

"Well, that's just rude..." Orochimaru muttered with a slight frown before bringing up his Kusanagi and parrying the first swing, only for his eyes to widen slightly. His arm was tingling with mild numbness from the sheer power of the blow. Jumping back slightly to dodge the stab at his stomach, Orochimaru slipped back into Naruto's guard and swung Kusanagi down on the Kurotsuki's left shoulder, only for his efforts to wound the genin to be awarded with a shower of sparks and a rather painful headbutt to connect with his face. Covering his bloodied face with his free hand and fixing his broken nose, Orochimaru could only glare at Naruto. If only he didn't have to keep his chakra suppressed... "Hmph...You're lucky this time, Shishisensou, but next time...your head will be mounted on my wall."

**"You'll have to get in line. Over half of Konoha has already laid claim to my skull."** Naruto snarled as he lunged at the traitorous Snake Summoner, only for the man to disappear, leaving Naruto to impact with the branch heavily, cracking the limb from his immense weight. Growling angrily, Naruto retracted the blades and scraped a metal claw along his left bracer, causing the armor covering his body to return to Feral Fang Mode. Dropping to one knee, Naruto was left gasping for breath, his vision blurry and unfocused and his hearing muted. Common side effects of using Brutal Fang.

"Naruto!" Sakura called out as she landed a short distance away with Sasuke's right arm slung across her shoulders. The Uchiha was sore and exhausted, but he was safe. The scarred kunoichi was free of any actual injury apart from being a little shaken up. Even Naruto was a little shaken up. He had just stood up against one of the Three Legendary Ninja. While not the strongest, Orochimaru was still very powerful and one of Konoha's greatest enemies. To have suvived the encounter was a feat in and of itself... "Are you hurt?"

"..." Unable to answer verbally due to being so greatly winded, Naruto simply shook his head, still panting quite heavily. Sitting down, Naruto leaned forward with his hands resting on the knees of his crossed legs, facing his team mates as he took a few moments to catch his breath. Brutal Fang Mode made his armor incredibly heavy and it weighed down on his entire body equally, thus the purpose for the Rockets. Were it not for the chakra-fueled propulsion vents, Naruto's speed would drop from high jounin to low genin in an instant. The armor also amplified any ninjutsu technique he used, but at the cost of higher chakra output.

Ergo, he was exhausted and he had only been using it for a total of _maybe_ five minutes...

"Did you...Did you kill him?" Sakura asked hesitantly, her eyes nervously scanning the area. Naruto shook his head negatively once more, making Sakura bite her bottom lip slightly. "...We need to find a place to rest for tonight. We'll head out at first light. Okay?"

"...Ye...Yeah..." Naruto wrasped out before tiredly climbing back to his feet. After some searching, they managed to take refuge in a rather large hole in the side of an even bigger tree. Using a simple Doton: Doryu Heki, Naruto sealed the hole to protect them from the wildlife and any other shinobi before getting comfortable. He didn't plan on moving for at least six hours.

_'That bastard thinks he can attack someone of MY pack and get away with it?'_ Naruto snarled in his mind, glaring at the wall of mud sealing them inside as Sakura tended to Sasuke's wounds under the light of a few glow sticks. His clawed hands became fists again. Taking a deep breath, he calmed down and closed his eyes for rest... _'I'll rip his fucking head off with my bare hands and mount it on my wall like a prized hunting trophy...'_

**xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx**

Yasei no Kiba Moodo- Feral Fang Mode (armored forelimbs/no swords)

Surudoikiba Moodo- Sharp Fang Mode (normal armor/with swords)

Tenga- Revolving Fang

Tetsuno Kegawa- Iron Fur

Doton: Moruoka- Earth Element: Mole Hill

Doton: Iwano Rotou- Earth Element: Rocky Outcrop

Zanninnakiba Moodo- Brutal Fang Mode (heavy full-body armor/no swords)

Soukou no Ookami- Armored Wolf

Doton: Doryuu Heki- Earth Element: Earth Style Wall


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.

**xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx**

Beasts of War

**xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx**

Chapter Four

"Airon Erubou!" Naruto snarled out as he slammed his left elbow into the wall of rock-hard mud sealing them inside the large hollowed section of the tree. With a single blow, the wall was destroyed. Stretching as he stood up, Sasuke suddenly winced, holding his left side where he had a cracked rib, a souvenir amongst others from the snake-like man that had attacked them yesterday. Jumping over to a nearby branch, Naruto went up higher into the tree, wanting to get an idea of where they were.

"What do you see up there?!" Sakura called out from down below. Reaching the canopy ceiling, Naruto found a limb capable of holding his weight before standing upright and looking around. It was still dark with night, but Naruto's eyes easily pierced through it. Finding the Central Tower sticking out above the tree tops just north of them, Naruto estimated the distance to be about two or three kilometers away. Once he was certain of what direction to go, Naruto dropped down from the canopy, landing a few feet away from Sakura in a heavy crouch. On the same branch he had cracked yesterday.

_Crack!_

"...Shit..." Naruto muttered, kicking off the branch just as it snapped in half, his claws digging into the bark and wood from the rest of the limb. Scrabbling onto the thick branch, Naruto growled quietly under his breath, dusting himself off and acting as if he hadn't almost fallen to his death. "Anyway...The tower is just north of here. Maybe a mile or two. If we leave now, we should arrive in about fifteen, maybe twenty minutes."

"Alright. I'll go tell Sasuke. Oh, and Naruto?" Sakura stated as she turned around, only to pause and glance back at Naruto with a teasing grin, who gave her a quizzical look in return. "Don't fall."

"...I'll try not to..." He grumbled, giving her a flat look out of annoyance, his ears folding back as Sakura started laughing...

**xXxXxXx**

_'I had to have been seeing things...'_ Hibara thought to herself as she eyed the towering lycan of Team 7 from the other side of the group, completely ignoring what the Hokage had to say about the Chuunin Exams. She distinctly recalled seeing him completely covered in metal back in the forest, but...what happened to his armor? Maybe it was a ninjutsu technique or it was hidden by some kind of seal? Gritting her teeth, Hibara rubbed her eyes and scratched at her hair, a nervous tic she had whenever she got thoroughly confused and couldn't ask questions like she wanted to.

"Since there is an uneven number of genin present and no one else is willing to quit, one of you will have to fight twice. Any volunteers?" Hayate declared before coughing into his hand. Almost immediately, Naruto stepped forward, his eyes narrowed slightly. He had wanted a shot at Kabuto, but since the whelp had forfeit, Naruto was left with nothing more than a few pathetic pups that weren't even worth the effort. Oh, well. Gave him something to vent on. "Name?"

"Kurotsuki Naruto." The Beast of War growled out, several of the genin present muttering amongst themselves. Hibara found herself staring at him again, her orange eyes seeking some sort of hint as to what it was about him that kept demanding her attention. She was broken from her thoughts by the declaration of the first fight.

"The combatants of the first match of the preliminary round will be Kurotsuki Naruto and Inazuma Thor." Hayate called out, prompting Hibara to glance between her hammer-wielding team mate and the brute of a wolf-man that was to be his opponent. She placed her hand on Thor's shoulder, who stood in front of her, and gave him a reassuring eye smile. Even though he had the physical strength of ten men and an unnaturally high Lightning affinity, it was apparent that even Thor had his doubts about winning the match. "Will the two aforementioned participants please step forward while the others please move to the upper level?"

"...I expect a good match." Naruto stated as he held his fist out to Thor, something that confused many, but it brought a smirk to Thor's lips. After bumping his fist against Naruto's, the two backed up a little while Hayate stood between them off to the side.

"Are both contestants ready?" The sickly jounin inquired, recieving two nods from them. With that, he raised his right hand before chopping it down and jumping back a safe distance. "Begin!"

"Raiton: Kaminari Bakudan!" Thor exclaimed while suddenly heaving his hammer up and slamming it down on the ground, causing an explosion of Lightning to shoot out in a crescent-shaped wave towards Naruto, but his attempt to land the first blow failed when Naruto hooked his left thumb on the guard to one of his swords and slung the weapon at the blonde, causing the electricity to arc and connect with the blade, canceling it out as the sword sailed past Thor's head when the genin leaned to the side to dodge. Smirking as he drew his second sword with his right hand, Naruto suddenly vanished from his spot, reappearing behind Thor with his back to the hammer-wielder while gripping his Lightning-coated sword in a reverse-grip in his left hand.

"Giyaku Burittsu!" Naruto howled as he spun to his right, the blade in his right hand gliding across Thor's back from his left shoulder to his right hip before Naruto's left sword made contact, slicing at the opposite angle from his left hip to his right shoulder, leaving an X to scar the back of his armor. Coming back around as Thor was momentarily paralyzed by the Lightning chakra while relatively unharmed by the sword blades themselves due to his armor, Naruto lashed out with a powerful left side kick to Thor's lower back, launching him several feet through the air before he tumbled across the ground. Sheathing his swords, Naruto turned to face Thor as he stood back up. "..."

"Damn...Didn't see that one coming..." Thor mumbled to himself as cracked his neck and rubbed the back of it, his storm colored eyes narrowing as he stared at Naruto. The Kurotsuki could see what could have possibly been arcs of yellow lightning jumping from each of the yellow flecks in Thor's eyes, resembling lightning leaping through the clouds during a raging storm. "Let's get serious, shall we?"

"Oh?" Naruto murmured, finding himself curious as to what the blonde had hidden up his sleeve. He found out a moment later when Thor formed a single handseal, coating his body in Lightning chakra. Narrowing his own eyes, Naruto hooked his left thumb on the guard of a sword, fully prepared to counter any Raiton ninjutsu his opponent may try to use on him.

"Raiton: Yokou!" Thor exclaimed while slamming his hammer down on the ground again, causing a bright flash of light that blinded Naruto, along with most everyone in the room. Seeing his chance, Thor charged forward while raising his hammer, but just as he got within range, Naruto's own body became encased in Lightning chakra before he suddenly slipped into Thor's guard.

"Zenpou Burittsu: Furu Kontatuku!" Naruto snarled, still unable to see, but far from being unable to fight. He quickly backhanded Thor across the jaw with his right hand as he spun in place before slinging his sword out again, only this time it didn't leave the sheath fully while the pommel struck Thor in the stomach, doubling the lightning-coated genin over as the sword shot back into its sheath. Spinning back around so that his right side faced Thor's front, Naruto brought his right knee up and struck Thor in the face, making the blonde 'stand up' straight once more before punching the blonde across the jaw with a right hook that made the Lightning chakra coating Thor's body flicker and die away while the lycan was still rotating from the continued motion of the punch and stepping closer to Thor, his left arm raised up. "Airon Erubou!"

"Gah!" Came the strangled and muted cry of pain as Thor was launched back several dozen meters by the impact, his face bloodied. Slamming into the far wall, Thor remained embedded in the stone, his body going limp. His team was shocked when they saw Mjolnir slip from Thor's fingers and fall to the ground, something that had _never_ happened before. Appearing next to the blonde genin, Hayate quickly checked for a pulse, easily finding one.

"Winner by knock out: Kurotsuki Naruto!" The ill proctor called out before a team of four medic-nin rushed out and retrieved Thor, hurrying him away on a stretcher. Shaking his head in order to dispell the Lightning chakra coating his body, Naruto snorted quietly before making his way up the stairs to his right and over to his team. Just as he reached his team mates and sensei, Team 9 approached them. Or rather, they approached Naruto.

"I must say, I was rather impressed with your unique taijutsu style, Naruto. I've never had the chance to see you fight before." Mitarashi Anko praised with a smirk, her arms crossed under her mesh-covered breasts. Although it was normally not allowed due to possible cheating, jounin instructors weren't allowed to proctor any of the Chuunin Exams if their students were to participate, but after arguing with the Sandaime for almost three hours, she finally got her way and got to do both. "I haven't seen anyone capable of knocking out Thunder Brat, either. Well, until now. Not even I could knock him out. Hell, no one has even been able to make him let go of that damn hammer of his either."

"...Thank you...I think." Naruto muttered quietly, unused to being praised for anything. Having been forced to grow up without his family due to the Kyuubi attacking, Naruto had been left alone to endure the fear and hatred people held for his clan. He then took notice of the look the red head in the group was giving him, making him cock an eyebrow out of confusion, but he dismissed it as nothing.

"Hey, hey! Could you teach me that awesome technique of yours?! That Airon Erubou one?!" Naomi suddenly started begging with boundless energy, her bright blue eyes wide with excitement. Glancing at Anko, Naruto recieved only a shrug before he sighed heavily. Tired of watching the girl bounce up and down on her toes, Naruto planted his left hand on top of her head, forcing her to stay still.

"No." He replied calmly and coldly, achieving only in making Naomi pout childishly. Smiling slightly, Naruto ruffled her hair and made the jinchuuriki glare at him and looked about ready to explode, but Anko nabbed the girl by the back of her leotard and dragged her away with Hibara following after them. Sighing, Naruto leaned back against the wall and crossed his arms over his chest. "Such a weird team..."

"And we aren't?" Sakura countered as she watched Subaku no Kankuro defeat Tsurugi with his puppet, Karasu. Naruto only snorted in response, refusing to answer. Sasuke rolled his eyes before seeing his name flash onto the screen along with that of Akadou Yoroi. Smirking faintly, Sasuke went down to the arena floor after Sakura wished him luck. Naruto simply stared at the wall across from him with a blank look on his wolf-like face. He was still thinking about what Orochimaru had said.

_'...Just how did he know? Shishisensou would never have given up clan information. So...how did he know that I was an Armored Wolf? Or that my family was among the Shishisensou royal clans?'_ Naruto mused, his claws digging into his biceps slightly as his eyes narrowed. He vowed to ensure that his people's secrets remained a secret. Strangely enough, Hana infiltrated his thoughts at that moment, making Naruto's eyes soften and for him to relax. It had only been a week since they last saw each other, but he missed Hana's touch. He wanted to hold her again, to kiss her, and even take an afternoon nap out in the forest with her again.

He knew he was just acting like a love sick pup, but he couldn't help it. He had already chosen his life-mate and she had chosen him in return. It was only natural that they didn't like being separated for long periods of time. He could only imagine how she would react if she were to get pregnant and he was away on missions for prolonged lengths of time. The image of Hana being the mother of his children made Naruto's heart stop for a moment, beating irregularly for a couple seconds before finally righting itself. That was his true goal, his dream; to settle down and raise a family of his own with the woman he loved...

"Winner: Uzumaki Naomi!" Hayate declared, his voice snapping Naruto from his thoughts and confusing him slightly. Hadn't Sasuke been fighting?

"I won my match, Sakura lost to that red haired girl from Team 9 and is currently in the clinic to get her minor burns treated, Choji got knocked out by Hinata, that Dosu guy was beaten by Neji, that Gaara kid destroyed Lee's left arm and leg, and Naomi just beat Ino even though it wasn't exactly a fair fight." Sasuke spoke up from the ground beside Naruto, helping bring his team mate up to speed. Sitting on the ground with his legs crossed, Sasuke had been relaxing in order to recover the chakra 'stolen' from him by his opponent. Almost a third had been drained within only two minutes of contact throughout the entire match. "You seemed to be thinking pretty hard for you to miss so much."

"Yeah...I guess so..." Naruto muttered quietly before cracking his neck to rid himself of the stiffness. Letting out a yawn that showed off all of his fanged teeth, Naruto shook his head, oblivious to the stares he was getting from several others. A moment later, he heard a growl coming from off to his left. Glancing at the source, Naruto found Kiba to be the one responsible with a semi-feral grin on his face before glancing at the screen. "Well, isn't that interesting..."

"Hey, Naruto!" Kiba spat at the taller shinobi, who gave him a bored look. "Alpha rules."

"Hmph...I've been waiting for this moment." Naruto muttered as he started undoing the straps to his armor. Noticing the look of confusion on Sasuke's face along with a few others, Naruto decided to elaborate. "We're about to have an 'Alpha's duel'. The rules are simple; no weapons, no companions, no armor, only taijutsu. The winner takes the position of 'Alpha' while the loser is kicked down to the bottom, becoming the 'Omega'. Simply put, it's how serious disputes are solved for both the Inuzuka and the Kurotsuki."

Without another word, Naruto set his equipment down and jumped over the railing, landing easily. Rolling his shoulders and taking a deep breath, Naruto dropped to all fours, his eyes locked on Kiba as the Inuzuka mirrored his stance while Akamaru stayed with Team 8, his claws and fangs growing longer as the Shikyaku technique of the Inuzuka clan became active without the use of handseals or the declaration of its name on Kiba's part. Unlike the other matches, Hayate knew the two were serious and that there was no reason to ask if they were ready; both looked about ready to rip something apart, which would most likely be one another.

"Inuzuka Kiba vs. Kurotsuki Naruto! Hajime!" Hayate declared before jumping back as far as he could. Instantly, both combatants sprinted forward, but with his more powerful muscles and longer stride, Naruto gained the most ground and speed, slamming into Kiba like a freight train and not stopping until he pushed Kiba all the way back to the wall, smashing him into the stone. Letting out a cry of pain, Kiba pushed through it and dug his claws into Naruto's neck, intending to rip his throat out, but his claws only rended shallow gashes in the surprisingly tough hide. That was when he was suddenly thrown back out into the middle of the floor, left to tumble across the ground before righting himself and sliding to a stop on his hands and feet.

"You're being stupid, Kiba..." Naruto growled out quietly as he calmly walked towards the sore Inuzuka. He had purposefully refrained from using his claws or fangs on the smaller genin, not wanting to seriously harm him. He had also refrained from using his Tetsuno Kegawa to even out their difference in power. There was no point to an Alpha's duel if both parties didn't risk personal injury. "I don't understand why you're acting like this."

"Bullshit!" Kiba spat before surging forward, twisting all of a sudden as he came within a couple feet of Naruto. "Tsuuga!"

"Idiot." Naruto growled calmly as he let Kiba get in close before his clawed paw-like hands shot forward, grabbing onto Kiba's wrists and halting the genin's attack. Narrowing his amber orbs while Kiba's brown eyes widened, Naruto let out a low growl before lifting the Inuzuka up and slamming him down on the ground, only to sling him into the wall behind him. It took a couple seconds, but Kiba managed to climb back to his feet while Naruto dropped down onto his hands and feet in a low-crouch.

"I won't...let you...take her..." Kiba growled out, bruised and scratched up from the impact, but relatively fine apart from being a little winded and dazed. Realizing what Kiba was getting at, Naruto sighed, only to dig his claws into the stone floor and surge forward, slamming his forearm into Kiba's chest and slamming the Inuzuka back into the wall moments after for a third time since the start of the match.

"It was her decision." Naruto whispered into Kiba's ear just moments before the genin passed out. Stepping back, Naruto grabbed Kiba before he could hit the ground, waiting until the medic-nin had arrived before letting him rest on the stretcher.

"Winner: Kurotsuki Naruto!" Hayate declared as Naruto slowly walked back up to the balcony to rejoin his team. Barely reaching the top of the stairs, Naruto found himself confronted with Hinata, who simply pointed down at the ground. Sighing heavily, Naruto found himself unable to refuse and turned around before sitting down on the top step while Hinata pulled out a small jar filled with a medical ointment.

"...You let him hurt you on purpose." Hinata muttered as she opened the jar and dipped two fingers into the cream before rubbing it along one of the gashes on Naruto's neck, making the normally brutish and unstoppable Kurotsuki hiss quietly as the scratch stung from the healing ointment. Naruto didn't answer, inhaling sharply once more as Hinata started applying the cream to another of the four gashes on the left side of his neck. "You shouldn't taunt him like that. He's just doing what he thinks to be right."

"...Yeah, but what he thinks is right is actually wrong." Naruto countered quietly as Akamaru came over to them and got in front of Naruto, letting the lycanthropic genin pet him. "Kiba thinks I'm taking his sister from him when I'm not. She _chose_ her path. He needs to get over that..."

"...What do you mean?" Hinata asked out of confusion, a hint of worry and dread creeping into her heart. Could he mean...Hana and him were...?

"...Shit..." Naruto sighed out, realizing he had pretty much given himself away. He knew she liked him and honestly, he liked her as well. He would love to have her as a life-mate, but she would have to be a Beta and even then, Hana had to approve of her. He then recalled that Hana said she was thinking about inviting Hinata to join them once she was of legal age. Grunting quietly as he stood up, he motioned for Hinata to follow him as he distanced himself from the others so that they could talk more privately. Sighing heavily with hesitance, Naruto kept his voice down as he explained. "We've been trying to keep it a secret for awhile now, but me and Hana have pledged ourselves to one another as life-mates. Once I'm a legal adult, whether by turning 18 or becoming a chuunin, me and Hana...We intend to marry using an old tradition of the Kurotsuki clan."

"..." Hinata couldn't say anything nor could she hold back her tears any longer. Covering her mouth with her sleeve-covered hands, Hinata could only stare up at Naruto with heartbreak as tears poured forth from her eyes and down her cheeks. Before she could try to run, Naruto gently grabbed her arms under her shoulders, making sure she paid attention to what he was about to say next.

"I _know_, Hinata. I know how you feel about me and I honestly feel the same. Hana knows, too. However, we pledged ourselves to one another before I found out about your feelings for me, but that doesn't mean something can't be worked out. After the exams, I want you to go to Hana and talk with her. She's been wanting to talk with you for over a month now, but missions and her work at the clinic has kept her from doing so. Can you do that for me?" Naruto explained before asking, getting a small and timid nod from Hinata. Sighing slightly, Naruto pulled Hinata into a comforting embrace, feeling rather guilty for upsetting her so bad. Gently kissing the top of her head, Naruto felt Hinata melt into his embrace more fully, calming down. "There's nothing to be worried about, Hinata. Just go and talk to her the first chance you get. She'll explain everything to you. Can you be strong and do that for me?"

"...H-Hai..." She muttered weakly as she was released. Drying her eyes with her sleeve cuff, Hinata reached into the pocket on the front of her jacket and withdrew a solid white mask with black lines trailing down from the corners of the eyes. Without another word, she put it on her face and walked back to her team. Naruto could only sigh and sit back down on the top step. That mask had been a gift he had given her back when they were younger, just a few days after her mother died from illness. He had told her that so long as she wore it, no one would be able to see her tears. Ever since, Hinata would only wear it whenever she was really upset about something.

"I'm a fucking fool..." Naruto hissed quietly as Sakura walked over to him, having returned from the clinic just a few minutes ago. Smiling sadly, she stood behind her team mate and formed a single handseal to focus her chakra before her hands glowed with the emerald flame of healing chakra, which she held over the cuts on his neck. While he did have a healing factor, it was only active so long as he was using his chakra. Most of the time, it was while his Iron Fur was active, which kind of counter-acted its use since there weren't many things that could pierce the defensive technique that they knew of. "I've known about her feelings for me and I've blatantly ignored them. Not only that, but she had to find out about me and Hana like _this_..."

"It could have been worse." Sakura reassured softly, making Naruto scoff. "Hey, she could have caught you two in the middle of something _private_."

"Hmph...You got a point there..." Naruto muttered as Sakura finished healing him and sat down beside her team mate. "But what I said was true. I really didn't know about her feelings for me until after me and Hana had already vowed to become life-mates."

"I know, Naruto. I heard." Sakura responded, making Naruto glance at her. Grinning a little sheepishly, Sakura couldn't keep from blushing as she rubbed the back of her neck. "Sorry. I couldn't help it. You know I think of you like a brother and I just wanted to make sure you didn't screw up or anything..."

"Hmph...Don't do it again." Naruto mumbled as he stared down at the ground, leaning forward with his elbows on his knees. "But still...I wish there was something more I could do. Hana's already expressed that she was thinking of letting Hinata join once she was of age and maybe one more. I'm not going to do anything that could ruin the bond me and her have, but...I feel that it's cost me another..."

"Don't worry about it, Naruto. I'll make sure that doesn't happen, okay?" Sakura commented with a cheesy grin that wasn't exactly normal for her. Scoffing, Naruto couldn't help smiling slightly at the sight. Patting him on the back of his shoulder, Sakura stood up and turned to leave when Naruto stopped her.

"...You actually think of me as a brother?" Naruto asked, but he didn't get an answer. Sakura smiled slightly before walking away without another word, intending to talk to Hinata while she had the chance. Smiling slightly himself, Naruto wondered if he actually wanted to leave his team now...

**xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx**

Raiton: Kaminari Bakudan- Lightning Element: Thunder Bomb

Giyaku Burittsu- Reverse Blitz

Raiton: Yokou- Lightning Element: Lingering Light

Zenpou Burittsu: Furu Kontatuku- Forward Blitz: Full Contact

Tsuuga- Piercing Fang

Shikakyu- Four-legged


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.

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Beasts of War

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Chapter Five

Sighing heavily as he stood atop the Hokage Monument, Naruto, lacking his armor and equipment, stared out over the village as the moon hung high in the night sky as midnight drew close. The second part of the Chuunin Exams ended the day before after the remaining genin had been paired off for their matches in the third part, which was to be a tournament style test that many people would come to see from all across the world. Including the Kazekage of Suna. Like he had asked of her, Hinata had sought out Hana earlier that morning and he had seen neither since then.

"..." Naruto was silent as he felt a slender pair of arms wrap around him from behind, making him smile faintly and close his eyes. Slowly turning around in the woman's embrace, Naruto found himself staring into Hana's dark brown eyes. "Hey, you...Aren't you supposed to be in bed still?"

"Mmm..." Hana moaned softly as she nuzzled his chest with a smile, still feeling a bit tired. She was currently dressed in her usual black spandex shorts and a light grey tank top under her chuunin flak vest, which had been left unzipped for once. "I just got done..._talking_ with Hina-chan. She's sleeping in my bed right now."

"Oh?" Naruto mumbled with a raised eye brow and a slight smirk, making Hana blush heavily and bury her face against Naruto's chest. "Already asserting your dominance over her, hm?"

"...N-N-Not e-exactly..." Hana whispered weakly, making Naruto raise his other eye brow in mild surprise. "S-She kind of...t-took me by surprise...but I managed to regain my dominance...after a little while..."

"Ah. She caught you off guard, did she?" Naruto questioned as he led his blushing beloved over to a spot under a nearby tree so that they could sit down and spend some time together. Sitting down and leaning back against the tree, Naruto pulled Hana into his lap, only to have the Inuzuka woman straddle him and bury her face against the warm fur of his neck. "So, did you have fun?"

"Yes, but...I want _more_..." She mumbled out before suddenly grinding against him, making Naruto suck in a sharp breath before she sat up, grabbed him by his bottom jaw, and kissed him passionately. It was several long seconds before they broke for air and when they did, Hana was left breathless and flushed, grinding against him more urgently. Biting her bottom lip, she put her hands on Naruto's chest and dug her claw-like nails into his fur and skin, a quiet whine slipping from her throat as her desire grew even stronger. "P-Please, Naruto-kun...I need it..."

"Hana..." Naruto whispered, trailing off as he felt his blood rush through his veins, his heart thundering in his chest with an insatiable carnal hunger. Glancing at the moon, Naruto quickly realized why Hana was so aroused and why he was reacting so strongly to her actions; it was a full moon. Why did it have to be a full moon?! Growling deeply, Naruto roughly gripped her rear with his left hand, digging his clothes into the supple flesh and ripping small tears into the fabric of her shorts with his claws. He knew fighting against his adrenaline-fueled instincts would only prove irritating and futile, leaving him with only one option; give in.

"Ngh! N-Naru...to..." Hana gasped out, grinding against him again as she braced one hand against his shoulder, her eyes squeezed shut in pleasure as her adrenaline started to surge through her arteries, causing her already pointed nails to grow a little longer along with her canine teeth becoming small fangs. Letting out a soft moan as she embraced the changes, Hana could feel herself getting even more..._excited_. Gnashing his teeth as he felt Hana's longer claws dig deeper into his chest, Naruto knew what was happening to her. Tsuki no Reihai was a biological 'issue' experienced by Inuzuka females.

It was something that was actually quite normal for Inuzuka women, especially virgins like Hana. It was something akin to a second 'period' of sorts for them that happened only during a full moon, but instead of the usual physical symptoms of pain and cramping, this one involved heightened hormones, a huge spike in their sex drive, and their adrenaline levels tripling. As a result, their bodies unconsciously use the Shikakyu technique, causing them to become slightly more feral in appearance while increasing their strength and endurance. As time goes on, they can learn to control it, but for virgins that had already vowed themself to an Alpha Male, like Hana, it was almost four times worse. Not only that, but it also made them far more fertile than it normally would.

"N-Nar...Narutooo..." Hana whined, snapping Naruto from his thoughts as she bowed her head, burying her face against his neck as she kept grinding against him, whining and moaning with torturous need as she pawed at his chest with clawed fingers. Eyes fluttering slightly with another sudden surge of adrenaline coursing through his veins, Naruto gripped Hana's rear more roughly as he nuzzled her neck for a moment before nibbling on her soft flesh. Whimpering softly, Hana's hands fumbled with his pants, her vision blurry with lust and mind foggy with need.

Letting out another growl, Naruto used his free hand to pull Hana's vest off, dropping it off to the side as he used a claw to pull the strap of her top aside. Knowing what he was doing, Hana pressed herself closer to him with anticipation, her eyes shooting open as she gasped loudly. A trickle of blood slid down her shoulder as the tips of Naruto's fangs sunk into her flesh at the base of her neck on the left side, marking her. A long and shaky moan escaped her lips as she fisted her hands in Naruto's fur. Slowly releasing her shoulder and licking the wound, Naruto watched as the fresh bite mark began to heal, becoming nothing more than dots of scar tissue while Hana let out an even louder moan, clutching the left side of her chest.

"..." She was breathing heavily as she sat up straight and took her shirt off, revealing her bare D-cup breasts and the black wolf's paw print decorating the top of her left breast. Pressing against him and thrusting her chest out, Hana slowly wrapped her arms around Naruto's neck, moaning once again as he started to roughly suck on her breasts, making her bite her bottom lip hard enough to draw a drop of blood. "N-Naruto-kun..."

"..." Naruto stayed silent as he suddenly rolled over on top of her, pinning Hana to the ground under him as he started to grind against her in return. Releasing her breast, Naruto slowly dragged the tip of his tongue from her left nipple, up the side of her neck, and to her earlobe, nibbling on it slightly before whispering something in her ear. "You're mine now...and I am yours."

"Mmmm...N-Naru..." Hana whimpered softly again, her eyes closing as she shivered with ecstacy. Even through the haze of lust, Hana knew she was going to be late to work in the morning. Hell, she might not even make it to work at all...

**xXxXxXx**

"Mmm...Naru...my koibito..." Hana whispered softly as she woke up with a satisfied smile on her face, nuzzling Naruto's chest as she laid on top of him with only the thin crisp white sheet to cover their naked frames. Even now, the middle of the afternoon three days after she had been marked, they were still unable to separate. Every time they tried, they were only drawn right back into each others arms. Pushing off of Naruto's chest and sitting up, Hana tilted her head back with her eyes closed and let out a deep, throaty moan of euphoria as she felt him slide deeper into her. Slowly looking back down at Naruto as she rolled her hips, Hana couldn't keep the seductive smirk from forming on her lips. "We're going to need to stop for food soon..."

"..." Naruto said nothing as he put his hands on Hana's hips, staring up into her eyes before his amber orbs began to wander across her bare flesh. Even as he did that, his mind drifted to his own body. Unlike the usual lycan that everyone saw, Naruto actually had a human form, but he rarely stayed in it mostly due to the irritating transformation that was actually quite painful, even for him. Only Hana, and any other woman she brought into their life, would know what he really looked like.

He still stood at a towering 6'6" with a muscular build and sun-tanned skin riddled with dozens of scars that were scattered all across his body. His eyes were still a feral amber like usual and his hair was a shaggy dark brown streaked with bits of grey that reached down just past his shoulder blades. Staining the flesh of his broad chest was a pair of large black fang-like markings. It was the mark of his clan, not unlike the red fang marks on Hana's cheeks that denoted her as an Inuzuka.

"Ow!" Naruto yelped with surprise, glaring down at Hana as she looked up at him with a semi-feral smirk as a couple drops of blood painted her lips and the points of her fang-like canine teeth, having bit him on the chest to snap him out of his thoughts. "What was that for?!"

"You were ignoring me...You know I don't like being ignored..." Hana muttered with a beguiling fanged smirk as she slowly licked the minor wound she left on his chest before she braced a clawed hand against the headboard and leaned up more, her face hovering just inches from Naruto's as her sensitive nipples barely grazed against his chest, making her shiver slightly. Smirking back at her, Naruto slid his right hand up her side without breaking eye contact, cupping her left breast and groping it as he reached down with his left hand, roughly squeezing her meaty right butt cheek. Biting her bottom lip and closing her eyes with a hearty moan, Hana started rocking her hips again. "...I'll get you back for that later. Right now, I need food. Preferrably meat..."

"Oh, yeah...I still got that deer from the Forest of Death, but I don't think it'll feed the both of us." Naruto muttered while Hana sat up once more, still straddling him. That was when he remembered what he had come across while Hana and Hinata spent the day 'talking'. "But I've got a caribou in the cellar."

"A caribou?" Hana reiterated as her eyes widened with excitement before she pulled away from him with some reluctance and attempt to stand, only to stumble and fall back onto the bed due to her numbed legs. Rolling over, she thumped her fist on his chest with frustration, making Naruto laugh. "Argh! Damn you, Naruto! I can't walk now because of you, asshole!"

"Hey, you're the one that didn't want me stop, remember?" Naruto threw back with a grin as he casually got out of bed, pulling on a pair of dark green shorts and tossing Hana her black panties and her light grey tank top. As she got dressed, Naruto opened the door to their bedroom before going back over to Hana and scooping her up into his arms, carrying her bridal style and making her protest weakly.

"H-Hey! I would have been able to walk just fine if you gave me a few more minutes!" She growled at him and succeeding in only making Naruto laugh slightly, but her actions spoke differently as she snuggled up against his chest, leaning her head against his shoulder as her cheeks reddened with a blush. Relaxing fully, Hana couldn't help smiling faintly. He was always pampering her and it was probably why he had a caribou. He knew that it was her favorite and he had most likely ordered it from up north since they weren't native to the forests around Konoha, even in the winter. Either that or he found a traveling vendor in the market district that was selling it. A loving smile formed on her lips as she looked up at her mate before kissing him on the cheek, making him blush faintly. "I love you..."

"And I love you." Naruto whispered back as he leaned his head down and kissed her on the forehead, making Hana blush and smile shyly before resting her head on his shoulder again. She didn't know what she would do without him...

**xXxXxXx**

"Mmm!" Hana groaned as she stretched her arms above her head, arching her back and standing on her toes. After Naruto cooked some of the caribou for their breakfast, they had ended up going for a few more rounds before finally deciding that they had had enough and took a shower, only to go at it again for another two rounds before finally managing to finish washing themselves and getting dressed afterwards. Now a little after noon, they were finally stepping outside after almost five full days. Turning around at a sound, Hana found her eyes settling upon her lover's form, which brought a smile to her face.

After nearly two hours of arguing with him between multiple bouts of sex, Hana had finally managed to convince Naruto to go outside in his human form. Just for one day. Although incredibly reluctant, Naruto was eventually forced to agree after Hana threatened not to sleep with him until after his birthday, even though he knew she wasn't being serious. Even Hana knew she wouldn't be able to keep her word. It took all of her will power to keep her hands to herself even now after a five days of non-stop sex.

"...I can't believe I let you talk me into this..." Naruto grumbled as he walked up to her after locking the front door. He was dressed in a pair of black pants that were taped down with white cloth wrapped around his shins from his knees down to his ankles, more cloth wrapped around his feet that left his toes and heels uncovered, and a baggy black sleeveless top. Even in his human form, Naruto constantly walked on the balls of his feet with his knees bent and slouching a little. Stuffing his hands in his pockets, Naruto let out a jaw cracking yawn that showed off his sharp fang-like canine teeth, only to have Hana stick her finger in his mouth before he could close it. Recoiling out of sudden confusion, Naruto glared at Hana as she giggled. "Really, Hana? _Must_ you treat me like the triplets?"

"Mm-hm! I wouldn't love you if I didn't." Hana replied as she walked up to the gate to the compound, making Naruto sigh heavily before following after her. On either side of either gate, there was a black ring painted onto the metal at about chest height on Hana, the only semblance of a 'handle' present on it. In truth, it was a security seal coded to only Kurotsuki. Placing his hand against the cool metal inside the ring on the right door, Naruto channeled a little bit of chakra into the hidden seal and pushed the door open, letting Hana out before following after her. Sudden realization dawned upon Hana's face as she turned around, a look of shock and mild fear crossed her face. "Oh, my god! The triplets! I forgot all about them!"

"Well, where are they?" Naruto questioned before noticing something down the street behind Hana, but didn't bring it up, barely suppressing the urge to smirk as Hana continued to freak out.

"I left them back at the house when I came looking for you. Ooh, Mom's going to _kill_ me!" Hana groaned with dread as she turned around to continue walking down the road, only to be tackled by the Haimaru Triplets themselves, knocking Hana over and making her cry out in surprise before she hit the ground. Laughing as the brown and grey furred husky-wolf dogs started licking Hana's face between barks and whines, Naruto almost forgot who had been trailing behind them; Inuzuka Tsume herself. And she didn't look very happy...

"Hana! Where the hell have you been?!" Tsume barked out with irritation, making Hana scramble to her feet and hide behind Naruto, slipping her head under his left arm with a sheepish grin. Pausing for a minute to look at the unknown person, Tsume was about to inquire as to who he was when she saw his eyes. Giving him a strange look caught between disbelief and confusion, Tsume walked up to them until they were only a couple feet apart. "Naruto? Is that you?"

"Yes..." Naruto groaned quietly as he scratched the back of his neck, looking away as he blushed faintly. Two more reasons why he didn't stay in his human form; the attention he got from it and the confusion that either preceeded or followed that attention. Tsume could only smirk, glancing over his body. Glowering with annoyance, Naruto pulled Hana out from behind him before walking back towards the gates to his compound. "Fuck it...I'm not dealing with this."

"H-Hey! You promised!" Hana called out, chasing after Naruto while Tsume simply blinked in confusion, not sure what to make of their behavior. Following after them wordlessly and slipping into the compound with the Haimaru brothers unnoticed, Tsume couldn't help marveling at the compound itself. Even though it had been almost twenty years since the Kyuubi had all, but wiped out the Kurotsuki clan, everything looked neat and well-kept. Naruto must have been taking care of the place in his spare time, tending to the gardens and cleaning each of the homes despite the heart ache that inevitably ensued.

"Oh, come on! It can't be that bad!" Tsume heard Hana call out as she ran into the house sitting at the base of the giant tree sitting in the middle of the small compound. Whistling in awe, Tsume could only stare at the mansion-like home. To think, her daughter was going to be living in that building pretty soon, though it seemed as if Hana had moved in a little early. Shaking those thoughts away, Tsume started making her way towards Naruto's home, only to barely make it five feet past the front door before she was suddenly struck with the nearly suffocating stench of sweat and sex that choked her nostrils.

"Damn...Just how long were they in here?" She muttered, pinching her nose with a healthy blush before deciding to wait for them outside. As she sat down at the edge of the front porch with the triplets, Tsume then started thinking. If they had been in there the whole time, then there was the possibility she would be having grand-babies a little sooner than she thought. Mentally dancing for joy at the thought, Tsume grinned broadly, only to hear a loud crash directly behind her. Jumping to her feet in surprise, Tsume, once again, didn't know what to make of the scene...

"Grrr..." Lying on his stomach on the porch just outside of the front door was the Naruto she was used to seeing with Hana straddling his lower back with his right arm twisted behind his back. Cocking an eye brow as she wondered when her daughter got so strong as to practically manhandle Naruto, Tsume wasn't given much time to contemplate such thoughts before Naruto countered. Rolling over as he dragged Hana off his back while she clung to his right arm, Naruto laid on his back with Hana lying on top of him before rolling back over, pinning her to the ground beneath him as he let out a slight growl, which made Hana wither beneath him with a sheepish grin, never realizing that her eyes had turned amber like Naruto's nor that her claws and fangs had become permanent. Noticing it, Naruto huffed before suddenly kissing Hana, making her relax beneath him and slowly wrap her arms around his neck.

"...Ahem..." Tsume cleared her throat with a look of mild annoyance on her face, tapping her foot on the ground as she kept her arms crossed over her chest. Not at all phased by her attempt to interrupt them, Naruto and Hana didn't break apart for a couple more seconds and smiled lovingly at each other while Hana blushed fiercely. Tsume raised her eye brow once again at the sight, having never seen her daughter act like that. Then again, she acted about the same way when she met Kouga, Hana's and Kiba's father, who had been killed in the Kyuubi attack. Tsume could only smile slightly at the sight as she remembered how she and Kouga used to behave almost exactly like Naruto and Hana were.

"...Don't speak a word about me being able to change into a human, Tsume." Naruto suddenly growled out as he stood up, helping Hana to her feet as he locked eyes with the Inuzuka Matriarch. The normally unshakable woman that was seen as the most stubborn and dominant female in all of Konoha suddenly found herself feeling rather small, much like a mere pup cornered by a dire wolf. Nodding wordlessly without letting such feelings show, Tsume recomposed herself. "Good. Now, if you don't mind, something has come up that I need to look into. Alone."

"Huh? But what about me?" Hana whined as she held onto Naruto's hand, attempting to give him the legendary 'Puppy Dog Eyes' that all Inuzuka women were infamous for being masters of, but it didn't even phase Naruto. Not in the way she hoped, at least. Smiling slightly and touching his nose to Hana's, Naruto gently pried his hand from her grasp.

"This is something I have to take care of by myself, aisai..." Naruto whispered, making Hana blush heavily at the name. Smiling shyly and wrapping her arms around him, Hana nuzzled his chest while Naruto wrapped his arms around her. Pulling away from him with great reluctance, Hana nodded and smiled lovingly as her blush burned strong, tears of joy stinging at the corners of her eyes. She had been dying to her him utter those words to her, to call her his 'wife'. After leading everyone back out of his compound, Naruto kissed Hana on her forehead before turning around and leaving.

"Nnn..." Hana whined softly as she chewed on her bottom lip nervously, watching him leave as she held her clasped hands in front of her chest. Smirking at her daughter's reaction, Tsume was about to tease her when she noticed Hana's wolf-like amber colored eyes that were identical to Naruto's along with her longer claws and fangs, which were partially visible from her lightly biting down on her bottom lip. She then noticed the scars on Hana's left shoulder and put two and two together; she had been marked. That mystery solved, Tsume continued with her original plans to tease her daughter.

"Relax, will you? You're acting as if you'll never see him again." Tsume remarked, making Hana blush heavily and look rather embarrassed, almost like a scolded dog, which only made the matriarch laugh. That was when she purposefully poked the bite mark on Hana's neck, making the younger woman give a slight yelp of surprise before blushing even more heavily. Giving Hana a knowing smirk, Tsume started to lead her daughter back to the Inuzuka compound. "Looks like you two couldn't wait any longer. So, tell me; how long were two going at it?"

"Mom!" Hana exclaimed with moritfication and embarrassment, glowering at her. Tsume simply snickered a little.

"Oh, come on. I want to know." Tsume insisted, but Hana just continued to glare at her indignantly. "If you tell me I won't bug you about it anymore."

"...I, uh...I don't even remember when we started..." Hana mumbled hesitantly and nervously, bowing her head as she rubbed the back of her neck. This only made Tsume stare at Hana with a look of mild surprise before she busted out with laughter. "I-It's not funny!"

"Yeah, it is!" Tsume managed out as she took a breath, still laughing at her daughter's expense. After a couple minutes, Tsume managed to recompose herself, even though she couldn't stop grinning. "He got you good, didn't he?"

"MOM!" Hana shouted, her face growing hotter as her very own mother continued to tease her...

**xXxXxXx**

"Hm? Can I help you, Naruto-san?" Kurenai inquired as Naruto walked up to her while her three students were busy training. Naruto nodded.

"I'm sorry for interrupting, but I need to speak with Kiba." Naruto answered, making Kurenai give him a look of slight confusion before pointing out where he was training. "Thank you."

Without waiting, Naruto started walking in the direction he had been guided, soon finding Kiba as he and Akamaru came out of a Gatsuuga. Spotting the lycan, Kiba's eyes flashed with anger before he became subdued, lowering his gaze to the ground as Naruto approached.

"..." Naruto was silent as he stopped in front of the shorter genin. Sighing, he suddenly slapped his hand across the side of Kiba's skull. "Cut that shit out, runt. I won't tolerate that shit."

"What the hell do you want?" Kiba growled quietly, still refusing to look up at Naruto. Deciding to skip the niceties, Naruto got straight to the point.

"After the Chuunin Exams, me and Hana are you going to be married. Thus, she is no longer the heir to the Inuzuka clan. I'm here to uphold my end of the deal that I made with your mother a year ago." Naruto responded, making Kiba look up at him with wide eyes, confused and shocked. "Your mother made me agree that if I were to marry Hana, I would have to train the next heir to the Inuzuka clan; you. Now, I'm going to give you thirty minutes to get your ass home, pack what you'll need for two weeks, and meet me at the North gate. If you're late, I'll make your life a living hell. Got that?"

"H-Hai..." Kiba muttered, cowed by both Naruto's words and the look on the lycan's face. Snapping his jaws and snarling at the genin, Naruto watched as Kiba suddenly took off, leaving him and Akamaru behind. When the dog whined, Naruto snorted.

"Don't worry. You're coming too." Naruto answered with a feral grin, something that made Akamaru whine again and lower his head in defeat before following after Kiba. Snorting, Naruto vanished in a whirlwind of leaves as he headed for the Hokage's office to get everything set up. Just as he reached the door to the Sandaime's office, Naruto had a feeling that things were going to get irritating...and soon...

**xXxXxXx**

"What do you mean 'he's upholding his end of the bargain'?" Hana growled at her mother coldly and calmly, the elder woman currently sweating slightly with a nervous grin as she held up her hands defensively. She realized the hind sight really was a bitch, knowing at the moment that she should have had Naruto tell her about it a _looong_ time ago.

"Well, since you're the heir and by marrying him, you wouldn't be the heir anymore, I figured I'd strike a deal with him." Tsume responded. "In return for marrying you and taking away the Inuzuka clan heir, he would have to train the next in line for the position, which would be Kiba."

"Wait...So, Naruto's going to be training my brother?" Hana asked, suddenly calming down with a confused expression on her face. Tsume could only give her daughter a flat look, growing wary of Hana's sudden case of mood swings. Then again, she wasn't exactly giving Hana a reason to stay happy the whole time; especially after she found out that Naruto was going to be gone for a couple weeks. Hana suddenly started pouting, crossing her arms over her chest. "And he won't even teach me a couple ninjutsu...He's such a jerk..."

_'Just what did you do to my daughter?!'_ Tsume mentally roared at Naruto as she kept her eyes on Hana, not wanting any more surprises. At that moment, Kiba came running inside and rushed up the stairs. Cocking an eyebrow, Tsume just knew Naruto had tracked him down and told him. Her thoughts were confirmed when the runt ran back outside with a duffel bag slung over his shoulder. _'For some reason, I have the feeling I'm going to regret letting Naruto teach Kiba...'_

**xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx**

Tsuki no Reihai- Moon Worship

Koibito- Lover

Aisai- Beloved Wife


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.

**xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx**

Beasts of War

**xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx**

Chapter Six

"Quit laughing, damn it...It's not funny." Hana whined as she sat in a both at a barbeque restaurant with her old friend, Anko. Who was currently unable to breathe from laughing so hard. Blushing heavily, Hana regretted explaining to Anko how her eyes had changed color along with her now bearing fang-like canines and sharp claws at all times. _'Why does everyone laugh?'_

"Phew...S-Sorry...Hehehe..." Anko tried to apologize as she finally stopped laughing, gasping for breath. Inhaling deeply and slowly, Anko managed to calm down fully. "Sorry, Hana-chan. So, five days, you say? Hmm...Might have to go _hunting_ one of these days..."

"Not. Funny. Anko." Hana growled menacingly as she glared at her purple haired friend, her claws digging into the table. Giving the marked Inuzuka woman a nervous grin, Anko waved her hands defensively.

"Sorry, sorry. I'm only joking." The tokubetsu jounin reassured, but it was still a few tense moments before Hana calmed back down. Sighing with relief when Hana snorted quietly and took a bite of the grilled meat, Anko decided to keep the jokes to a minimum. She really thought Hana was going to try to claw her eyes out that time. She probably would have tried, too. "You're becoming more and more like him by the day. You know that, right?"

"Hm? What do you mean?" Hana inquired before bringing another piece of beef to her lips with her chop sticks.

"That temper of yours, for one. I've seen him pissed off and it ain't pretty. You were about there yourself a minute ago. Not only that, but you snorted. Just like he does all the time." Anko pointed out before tapping her chin in thought. "Although you aren't as cuddly as the giant furball, you're more social and friendlier than he is, so that's a plus. So, any idea what kind of torture he's putting your kid brother through? I can only imagine what his teaching methods are. I mean, look at his team mates. From what Kakashi said, _Naruto_ was the one training them for the past three months and look at how they turned out."

"Yeah, you got a point there...I just hope he doesn't kill Kiba. Mom would be pissed." Hana responded, swallowing the last of her food and sighing before crossing her arms and resting them on the table with her head lying on them. Pouting slightly, Hana let out a rather canine-like whine. "I miss him..."

"Geez, relax, will ya? He'll be back in a few days." Anko muttered around the strip of tender meat before eating it. It was like clockwork, every time. At least once every hour she spends awake of every day, Hana would start moping about because she missed Naruto. It was the main reason Anko had taken the younger woman out for some food, hoping it would get her mind off of Naruto's absence; apparently not. However, Anko did take notice to the fact Hana was eating a little more than she usually would, but didn't think anything of it. "It's not like he's on the other side of the world or anything."

**xXxXxXx**

"What the hell are we doing here?!" Kiba raged as he trudged through the snow, using his chakra to keep his body warm as a mild-tempered blizzard roared about them. Just a few feet ahead of him was Naruto, his armor and equipment absent from his body, with Akamaru following right beside the taller genin. The young Inuzuka was dressed in only a pair of black pants with white cloth wrapping around his shins from his knees down to his ankles, white cloth wrapped around his feet that left his toes and heels uncovered, and a mesh short-sleeve shirt. His hair had also grown much longer thanks to a vitamin Naruto had been supplying him to help speed up the growth of his hair for certain techniques, which now reached down to the middle of his back. Other than that, he hadn't changed in the past week and a half.

"Endurance training." Naruto growled back at Kiba over his shoulder. He wasn't lying. Unlike other shinobi, Naruto taught what wasn't taught. How to survive in a frozen tundra, how to survive in a desert, how to survive while stranded on an island. He taught things such as learning how to fight without one of the five senses; without sight, without sound, without smell, without touch, and even without taste. It was surprising how losing any one of them could easily throw someone off.

Being unable to use genjutsu himself, Naruto went with the next best thing for his genjutsu training; hallucinogenic plants ranging from flowers to mushrooms to herbs to berries. His ninjutsu training sessions usually included the limitation of a single technique for the party he was training and they had to beat him using only that technique. Sometimes it was worse than that. For his taijutsu training, Naruto had come across some special weights that were a set of ANBU-style body armor with seals engraved on them; specifically meant for training, not combat. He would usually have the person wear the armor before running through the katas of whatever he happened to be teaching at the time before forcing them into 24-hour taijutsu match.

His strength and speed training involved fighting wild fauna of many climates and terrains that included animals like bears, tigers, rhinos, crocodiles, leopards, lions, cheetahs, wolves, and many other creatures without any weapons, except for maybe _one_ kunai, and no ninjutsu. His endurance training involved anything from swimming against the powerful currents of white-water rapids to taijutsu matches on top of a lake for anywhere between a couple hours to an entire day to even climate endurance such as the scorching heat of the desert to the arctic chill of the northern tundras and mountains. Unfortunately, Kiba only got a slight fraction of the training Naruto wanted to put him through due to the short deadline he had.

What Kiba found scary about Naruto was the fact the bipedal wolf did everything right beside him. With practiced skill and experience, at that...

"Grrr..." Kiba simply kept his mouth shut and growled, shivering from the wind chill. He was having a hard time figuring out whether it was his chakra that was keeping him from freezing to death...or his growing hatred of the lycan in front of him. Either way, he was still alive, but...for how much longer? _'Only four more days! Thank god!'_

**xXxXxXx**

"Ugh..." Hana groaned softly as she left the bathroom, wiping her mouth clean with one hand as she held her stomach with the other. Lying down on the couch in the living room, Hana groaned again and tried to ignore her sudden nausea. "Man, I must eaten something I shouldn't have last night..."

Lying on the couch across the way were her three dogs, the Haimaru triplets; Kaijin, Haijin, and Kaido. The only way to tell them apart was difficult. Kaijin had a speck of reddish-brown fur under his chin, Haijin's grey fur on his back was slightly darker than the others, and Kaido had two dark brown marks on either side of his neck under his ears. When Kaijin started whining, Hana glanced over at them and smiled faintly. They had been strangely more obedient recently and Hana couldn't tell if it was because of the fact she had changed slightly after being marked or if it was for some other reason. The three brothers didn't cause her any trouble and were strangely quieter than usual, too.

"Boys...Come here." Hana spoke up as she sat up and patted the couch cushions on either side of her. All at once, the Haimaru triplets climbed off the couch and walked over to Hana before jumping on the couch beside her. Hana frowned slightly, noticing how they had all kept their heads and tails down. They never acted like that before. Holding the sides of Haijin's head, Hana scratched under the large dog's chin with a look of worry on her face. "What's up with you guys? You aren't feeling too good either, huh?"

Kaido whined softly as he inched his way over to Hana, touching his nose to her stomach. Confused, Hana looked down at him and scratched him behind his ear while voicing her confusion.

"What do you mean I'm burdened?" Hana muttered with a frown, only for Kaido and Haijin to whine again before they both touched their noses to her stomach again. Eyes widening, Hana stared down at them in shock. "You mean...I'm...pregnant?"

Hearing someone gasp behind her, Hana jumped to her feet in surprise as she turned around to see her mother standing there. A moment later, the woman suddenly smiled and raced forward, wrapping her arms around Hana happily as tears of joy gathered in her eyes. Hana didn't know how to react, having never seen her mom act like she was. Finally, as the revelation of her condition sunk in, Hana found herself smiling as well before hugging her mother back.

"...How is Naruto going to react?" Tsume suddenly asked, pulling back to look at her daughter's face, who had started crying. Hana choked back a small sob as she tried to dry her eyes, only to fail.

"Trust me, mom. It'll be okay. After growing up on his own, Naruto has wanted nothing more than to have a family of his own." Hana responded as she sat down on the couch and leaned back while Tsume sat down beside her. "If anything, he'll probably forbid me from doing anything until after the baby is born."

"You've got that right." Naruto suddenly spoke up from a few feet behind them, catching both of them by surprise. Almost instantly, Hana seemingly teleported from her spot on the couch and into Naruto's arms, wrapping her own arms around him as best as she could while nuzzling his chest with a beaming grin. Without a word, she reached up and grabbed Naruto's chin before tilting his head down while she stood up on her toes, kissing him happily as Naruto wrapped his arms around her and held her close. Tsume could only smile at the scene before coughing into her hand, a little surprised that it worked to interrupt their kiss. "So, when did you find out?"

"Um...Just a few minutes ago, actually." Hana responded, blushing slightly out of embarrassment. "The triplets had to clue me in."

"Really?" Naruto asked incredulously with a raised eye brow while Hana nuzzled his chest again and breathing in through her nose. Almost immediately, she puleld away from him with a grimace. Giving a look of confusion, Naruto looked down at himself before looking back at her. "What's wrong?"

"...You stink." Hana muttered, making Naruto blush faintly beneath his fur while Tsume covered her mouth in a futile attempt to keep from laughing. "You need a bath. Now."

"Huh-What the hell do you think you're doing?! I'm not some mutt you can just dump in a tub of water, damn it!" Naruto barked out in protect as Hana got behind him and started pushing him towards the stairs and try as he might, he couldn't halt her efforts. This time, Tsume either couldn't hold it back any long or simply decided not to before she bust out laughing once more, holding her sides as she started making her way to the front door, the Haimaru triplets following after her.

"Damn you..." Naruto muttered as Hana shoved him into the shower stall, which could normally fit up four people comfortably at one time. Like most other things in the house and in the other houses of the Kurotsuki compound, it was made larger due to the fact that even the smallest of Shishisensou still dwarfed many people. If he remembered right from the photos and journals, his father, Kokushoku, was amongst the shortest of Kurotsuki and he stood at 6'3" was just as stocky as the others; he was known mostly for his 'short' stature and his tail, which was longer and bushier than any other Kurotsuki. That and his sword, Inuhoozuki.

"Oh, hush, you. At least I'm joining you..." Hana muttered as she finished stripping and stepped into the shower with him. She then gave him a cheeky grin before reaching behind him and turning the water.

"Oi!" Naruto exclaimed as his back went rigid and eyes snapped wide open as he was hit with a blast of cold water. Glaring down at Hana as she giggled and reached around the other side of him to turn on the hot water, Naruto found himself unable to stay mad at her and it wasn't because she was carrying their child inside of her. Leaning down as he gently cupped her chin, Hana could only look up at him with slight confusion before their lips met. Almost instantly, she melted into the kiss and pressed her body up against him.

"What was that for?" Hana whispered a little breathlessly as she stared up at him, only for Naruto to shake his head slightly and smile before stepping under the water fully, drenching his body. Huffing with mild annoyance, Hana grabbed the bottle of shampoo set in the corner of the stall before popping it open and pouring a decent amount into her other hand. As Naruto stepped back out of the water, Hana started rubbing it into the fur on Naruto's back and shoulders. As Naruto glanced at over his shoulder, Hana couldn't keep from rolling her eyes, smirking faintly as she helped wash her lover's body.

It hadn't been the first time and it definitely won't be the last...

**xXxXxXx**

"Katon: Hosenka!" Sasuke called out as he launched roughly a dozen fireballs at his team mate, the pinkette backflipping off the ground and landing on the vertical surface of a bamboo tree above the targeted area and threw a handful of shuriken at Sasuke in retaliation. Second stage Sharingan eyes widening, Sasuke instantly drew a pair of kunai and deflected the offending razor-sharp throwing stars that he couldn't dodge. Focusing back on Sakura, the Uchiha found that she had disappeared amongst the forest of thin green stalks. "Che...Where the hell did she go?"

"Shinjuu Zanshu!" Was heard echoing through the area, but it was muffled. Struck with realization just as Sakura's hands burst from the ground by his feet, Sasuke barely managed to jump forward, rolling on his right shoulder as he chucked a kunai at one of the hands, striking one and dispelling the Kage Bunshin Sakura had used. Thanks to Naruto's training boosting her chakra reserves to almost low-chuunin, Kakashi had taken to teaching her several techniques, including the Shinjuu Zanshu and the Kage Bunshin, but Sakura's limit was only a single clone. That meant Sakura's plan had either failed or...

_BOOOOM!_

"Sh-Shit!" Sasuke hissed as he slid across the ground, his arms crossed in front of him as the explosion tore through the bamboo stalks and ripped Sasuke's feet from the ground before he could anchor himself with chakra. Righting himself in mid-air and sliding across the ground on his feet with one hand touching the soil for added stability, Sasuke was instantly thrown on the defensive when Sakura attacked once again with a pair of solid metal tonfa, the Uchiha's left forearm instantly going numb from the impact of blocking a tonfa-augmented elbow strike with her left arm. Jumping back, Sasuke started going through more handseals. "Katon: Endan!"

"Doton: Doryuu Heki!" Sakura called out while slamming the shorter ends of her tonfa into the ground, causing a wall of solid earth to rise in front of her and protect her from the Katon technique. Having a rather strong Earth affinity opened a number of metaphorical doors for her, especially since Naruto had helped raise her chakra levels. Since both Kakashi and Naruto had an Earth affinity, they had both taught her a couple Doton techniques a piece and they had paid off rather well. Slipping the longer end of her tonfa through the metal hoops attached to her belt at either hip, Sakura started running through a couple handseals before starting to sink into the ground. "Doton: Dochuu Eigyo."

"...Not going to catch me off guard this time." Sasuke muttered to himself before jumping back even further than before, landing on top of a rock sitting in the middle of a lazily flowing stream that cut through the bamboo forest of Training Ground 15. Hearing a slight whizzing sound, Sasuke blocked a senbon with the kunai in his hand before jumping and spinning horizontally, dodging the shuriken that almost stabbed into his right leg. Landing on his left foot on top of the rock, Sasuke kicked off the boulder into a backflip to avoid the Windmill Shuriken that almost took his leg off, only to reach down and grab it through the hole at its center with his right hand, twisting his body and landing on his feet on top of the boulder before flinging it off to the right of where it came from.

"..." Sakura stayed quiet as she rolled to the side to avoid being hit with the spinning disc as it mowed down several bamboo stalks. Getting an idea, Sakura grabbed onto one of them and suddenly swung it while thrusting forward, the nearly thirty foot long stalk bending before suddenly snapping straight again. Eyes widening with shock as he turned to the side, Sasuke discovered he wasn't fast enough to dodge the bamboo, the rod striking him across his stomach and launching him from the rock and into the river.

"..." Sasuke didn't say a word as he stood up in the waist-deep water, soaked from head to toe and not looking all too pleased with the outcome either. Unable to contain it, Sakura started giggling , but she at least had the decency to try to stifle them by covering her mouth with her hands. It didn't help, though. Sighing heavily, Sasuke waded to the shore and climbed out, his eye brow twitching slightly.

"Ehehehe...S-Sorry, Sasuke-kun. I forgot about the water." Sakura apologized, blushing faintly with a sheepish grin as she rubbed the back of her neck. Thankful for the fact he wore a face mask not unlike their sensei, Sasuke looked away as his own cheeks reddened slightly with a faint blush at the sight of her smile. Waving her dismissively and purposefully flinging droplets of water at her with his right hand, Sasuke started walking away a little awkwardly, the sight making Sakura giggle again as she followed after him.

While Sakura had already mastered the Water Walking chakra control technique, Sasuke was still lagging behind due to his larger reserves and wasn't able to stand on water unexpectedly like being struck with a bamboo pole and being sent flying into a river. He found it irritating that he hadn't yet mastered it, but at the same time, he was...reluctantly glad he hadn't. Over the past couple weeks, he and Sakura had been training together in private in Training Ground 15 and Sasuke had been starting to actually take notice to the changes Sakura had gone through since they returned from Wave Country.

_'Has it really been almost six months since that day?'_ Sasuke thought to himself in wonder. Time had definitely flown by. Thoughts drifting back to Sakura, the Uchiha found himself actually starting to like the pink haired girl a little. Now that she had been broken of her infatuation, Sasuke discovered that he could have an actual conversation with the intelligent girl without her fawning over him. In fact, she barely retained any of her old habits apart from calling him 'Sasuke-kun' still. Glancing back at Sakura over his shoulder, he recieved another sheepish smile as she blushed with embarrassment once more. Once again thankful for his mask, Sasuke looked forward as his own cheeks were dusted pink. _'...I'm going to kill Naruto...'_

Unknown to everyone else, Naruto had made a bet with the Uchiha that he would start to like Sakura before the end of the Chuunin Exams...

**xXxXxXx**

"..." Gazing at the life-size painting of his deceased father as it hung on the wall amongst the other portraits of past Kurotsuki, Naruto tensed his jaw as his chest tightened with a dull aching pain. He was below the Kurotsuki compound, in the catacombs, as Hana slept in bed back in their room.

Standing at 6'3", Kurotsuki Kokushoku had a muscular and stocky build like any other Kurotsuki. His body was covered in primarily black fur with a dull grey-white covering the front of his torso, the front of his neck, under his jaw, and around his bright blue eyes. His forearms were bound with black metal bracers that ran from his wrists to his elbows, a pair of dark midnight blue pants on his legs that ended at his digitigrade knees that had a pair of dull golden metal rings on either side of the cuffs to keep them tight while another decorated the front of his pants like a belt buckle, a solid black chest plate covering his upper back and chest, a black pauldron secured to his left shoulder with another ring of dull golden metal centered over his chest with numerous black leather straps reaching around his body to hold the shoulder armor in place, and a sword at his left hip.

Inuhoozuki, his father's sword, had a three and a half foot long double-edged blade of solid black metal with a curved knuckle guard of black metal at one side with square plates of dark colored metal mounted to it that shimmered in hues of dark blue, dark purple, and dark green. The sword had gained its name not only for its coloration and the decorations on the knuckle guard, but also for the strangely poisonous affect it had on those wounded by the blade.

Beside the portrait of his father was that of his mother, Kurotsuki Setsugetuka. Like most females of the Kurotsuki, Setsugetuka stood at 6'4", an inch taller than Kokushoku. She was of a much slimmer and more slender build than Kokushoku, like most females, and she was covered in snow white fur, her eyes being a bright and warm honey-gold. She was dressed in a dark midnight blue kimono custom tailored for her that bore a black crescent moon on the right side of the chest in a white outline while different flowers decorated the lower left half of the outfit. Hanging from her left ear was the same earring Naruto now wore.

"..." Maintaining his vigilance, Naruto slowly reached up with a shaky right hand and lightly touched his hand to the side of his mother's face. Like all other Kurotsuki, he had near perfect memory and like his fallen kin, Naruto remembered the first thing he saw when his eyes first opened. That first sight had been his mother's face as she hummed a lullaby to him just a couple hours after his birth. It was also the last and only memory he had of her.

"...Was she your mother?" Hana asked softly from behind him, making Naruto nod slightly as he removed his hand from the painting. Turning around to face his mate, Naruto found her dressed in only her black panties and white tank top. She must have just woken up and come looking for him when she realized he wasn't in bed. Hana gave him a small, sad smile as she walked up to him and gently caressed his cheek, looking up at him. "You have her eyes..."

"..." Naruto still didn't say anything as he closed his eyes and gently covered Hana's hand with his own. Gently wrapping her arms around him, Hana simply nuzzled his chest and waited. It was a few minutes of them just standing there before he spoke up, his voice quiet and strained with suppressed emotion. "She died of illness shortly after giving birth to me. My father raised me as best as he could in the two years that followed, only for him and the others of the Kurotsuki clan to head into battle against the Kyuubi. Our numbers were already thin from the war, but..."

"Shh...It's okay, love. You don't have to tell me." Hana hushed quietly, gently brushing her fingers along the side of his muzzle in a reassuring manner as he fell silent. Sighing heavily, Naruto shook his head. He needed to talk. He needed to fill the silence that was deafening him.

"After my father died, your mother took me in for a short time. You were only a year or two older than me at the time, I think. Kouga-san wasn't too happy about it at first, but he had been a friend of my father's and Tsume had been my mother's best friend since they were children." Naruto muttered, something that surprised Hana a little. She had no idea that their parents had been friends. "I was with your family for only about a year. Like my kin, I matured faster than normal and I reached a point where I could take care of myself, albeit, with some difficulty. I left of my own will and lived in the forest until I turned seven. When I enrolled in the Academy, I moved back into my clan's compound. I've been here since..."

"...Naruto..." Hana whispered as they stared at each other for a moment. Smiling faintly, she gently grabbed his hands with her own before walking backwards and pulling him along. "Come on. Let's go back to bed."

"..." Naruto was silent after that, not exactly wanting to sleep, but he wasn't going to argue. The Chuunin Exams began in the morning...

**xXxXxXx**

"..." Naruto remained silent as he stood amongst the other genin that had progressed to the Third Exam, minus one due to Nara Shikamaru withdrawing from the Chuunin Exams. Thus, the numbers were evened back out. Sasuke was to fight Hinata, Naruto was to fight Neji, Kankuro was to fight Shino, Naomi was to fight Temari, and Gaara was to fight Hibara.

_'The Daimyo of Wind and Fire are here. Along with the Kazekage...'_ Naruto mused as he glanced around the arena, muting out what Genma was saying about the change in the matches due to Shikamaru's retreat. Having wanted to draw the Kurotsuki clan out of the ashes of its destruction and back into the light, Naruto had chosen to use Teikoku no Kiba Moodo instead of his usual armor modes; it was the second of two modes that affected his entire outfit, but in a different way than Brutal Fang.

He was dressed in a pair of dark imperial blue pants that ended at the raised heels of his feet with thin silvery white rope tied around the cuffs, his knees were covered with polished black metal knee guards, he had on a baggy dark midnight blue top that hung down to the middle of his thighs with a thick silvery white rope tied around his waist to hold it closed while the baggy sleeves hung down to the tips of his clawed fingers, an ornamental pair of polished black metal bracers strapped to his forearms with intricate golden engravings on them while similarly decorated plates armored the back of his hands, an ornamental pauldron of polished black metal decorated with more golden engravings along the bottom edge rested on his left shoulder with black leather straps crossing his body while a pair of ornamental longswords ran parallel to one another behind his lower back with the black leather-wrapped handles at his left as tassels of thin silvery white rope hung from the polished silver pommels.

_'The Daimyo of Fire recognizes my attire...Odd.'_ Naruto mentally noted as his sharp eyes caught sight of the Daimyo's expression becoming one of veiled surprise before he muttered something to one of his attendants. Turning his attention back to what was going on around him, Naruto waited for Genma to call his name.

"Now, the first match of the Chuunin Exams: Kurotsuki Naruto and Hyuuga Neji. Will the contestants other than those named please go to the waiting room?" Genma began, speaking loud enough for everyone in the stadium to hear. Almost immediately, the other genin around him began to file into a doorway off to the side of the arena that led up to the spot designated. As they left, Naruto and Neji stood across from one another in the middle of the arena.

"You look like you have something to say." Neji spoke up with an arrogant smirk. Naruto simply narrowed his eyes, his hands still slipped into the opposite sleeve as he grasped his forearms. Nodding slightly, Naruto took a breath and gained an apathetic look on his face.

"Your hatred of the Hyuuga Main house stops here, Neji. I know how you have belittled and beaten the heiress, Hyuuga Hinata; your cousin. I know that you wish for nothing more than to meet her in this tournament and attempt to destroy her in front of all of these people, knowing the Main House can not stop you from ending her life." Naruto began, his voice calm and strong as he blatantly ignored the look of outrage on Neji's face and whispering murmurs amongst the audience. "I, too, have been waiting for this day. I have been waiting to do what Hinata refuses to do. I am here to hurt you. I am here to defend what should have been threatened. I, Kurotsuki Naruto, vow to defend Hyuuga Hinata as her Protector."

"Tch...Big words for a flea-bitten stray." Neji spat back before smirking again and jabbing a finger at Naruto. "You have no right to declare such guardianship. Only someone of _royal_ blood can. You're just-"

"-the last living member of the Kurotsuki clan, one of the four royal families of the Shishisensou!" Naruto suddenly snarled viciously at the Hyuuga, who flinched back in startlement, as he removed his hands from his sleeves and he flexed his claws. How dare he disrespect his people?! How dare this pathetic maggot look down on him?! Jabbing a clawed finger back at Neji, Naruto growled darkly with anger. "I will tolerate the slandering of my people _no more_! Ever since my clan was destroyed by the Kyuubi, this world has done nothing, but disrespect my people! Kiri of Water Country slew my people left and right, all because of one man's madness! In Earth Country, my people were cut down mercilessly because they refused to join Iwa! Suna refused to shelter my people and exiled them to the deserts, where they withered and died! Even _Konoha_ has done my people wrong! After my clan was destroyed and I was left in their absence, I have been scorned and beaten and ostrasized simply because I didn't look human! And yet for each and every nation, my people have fought, killed, and _died_ to protect them!"

"..." Neji didn't say a word, too shaken up by Naruto's words, but he was far from being defeated. Fate had already decreed him to be the victor. Naruto snarled at Genma, spooking the man slightly and making him snap out of the trance he had been lulled into. Up in the stands, Anko had a calm look on her face with Hana sitting beside her.

"Watch carefully, Hana. This is what I meant about his temper." Anko muttered to the slightly younger woman, never taking her brown eyes off the lycan. "The only thing that surprises me is the fact it took him this long to finally retaliate."

"..." Hana didn't say anything, her golden amber eyes locked on Naruto as she watched him with worry. _'Naruto...'_

"Kurotsuki Naruto vs Hyuuga Neji!" Genma called out before biting down on the wooden senbon in his mouth, chopping his hand down as he declared a single word. "BEGIN!"

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Kaijin- Embers

Haijin- Ashes and Dust

Kaido- Ashes and Earth

Kokushoku- Black Dwarf

Inuhoozuki- Nightshade

Setsugetuka- Snow, Moon, and Flowers

Teikoku no Kiba Moodo- Imperial Fang


	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.

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Beasts of War

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Chapter Seven

Naruto was the first to move, the claws of his uncovered feet gripping the ground and kicking off with great force. Foregoing his swords for the moment, Naruto lashed out with clawed swipe, snarling as the gap between him and Neji was closed in a split second. Barely twisting his body and leaning back, Neji narrowly avoided injury before jumping back, his Byakugan flaring to life. Growling quietly as he activated his Tetsu no Kegawa, Naruto reminded himself to keep his distance. Even with his Iron Fur, the Jyuuken was still a dangerous thing.

"I'm going to enjoy watching as you grovel at my feet, begging for mercy like a _good_ dog." Neji sneered as he charged forward for a palm strike, never noticing how Naruto's eyes narrowed and his lips curled in a vicious snarl. Roaring with fury, Naruto raised his left arm up above his head.

"Airon Erubou!" Naruto bellowed before bringing it down on Neji's wrist with just centimeters to spare between the Hyuuga's hand and his rib-cage. Snapping the joint with the force of the blow, Naruto ignored Neji's short cry of pain before he continued his assault. Striking Neji across the jaw with a right hook, Naruto turned his hand around and splayed his fingers, retracting the limb and grabbing the right side of Neji's face before hauling him in, driving his right knee into the Hyuuga's left side, cracking several ribs in that one rage-fueled blow.

Catching Neji under his chin with a left upper-cut and lifting the Hyuuga a couple inches off the ground, Naruto spun around to his left, his feet leaving the ground for a moment as he raised his left foot high. As his right foot touched back down on the ground, the back of Naruto's left heel connected with the back of Neji's neck before he swung his leg down, smashing the Branch Family member into the ground face-first. Growling deeply as he took a couple steps back, Naruto kept his fiery amber eyes locked on Neji, watching as the shorter male struggled to pick himself up off the ground.

"Kurotsuki are not _dogs_. We're _WOLVES_! And you'll be sure to remember that!" Naruto barked out as he shot forward just as Neji, dazed and hurting, got to his feet. Pupil-less white eyes going wide, Neji couldn't react in time to avoid the left rising knee that impacted his solar plexus, lifting him off the ground and doubling him over as Naruto's right elbow slammed into his back between his shoulder blades, causing white-hot sparks of pain to flash behind his eyes and through his nervous system. Grabbing the Hyuuga's shoulders to hold him in place for a moment, Naruto brought his left knee back up for a second strike while letting him go, kicking Neji higher into the air so that they were eye level. Cocking his head back, Naruto lurched forward with a punishing headbutt that launched Neji back several meters, sending him tumbling across the ground with a bloodied and bruised face. "And we do _not_ beg."

"...So, this is the true might of a Shishisensou." Jiraiya muttered to himself as he spied on the match from a taller building, using his telescope to get a better view. Even though he had been around long before the end of the Shishisensou, Jiraiya had never seen one fight before. Well, he had never been able to _watch_ one fight since the last chance he had was back during the Third War and they were all rather preoccupied. Frowning slightly as he observed the brutal beating the Hyuuga boy was recieving, Jiraiya wondered how far the boy would go, but dismissed the thought. He already had one apprentice and that was more than enough for him. Especially since she was the legacy of his deceased student.

"Any sign of Orochimaru?" Kakashi inquired from behind the Sennin, slouching slightly with his hands in his pockets while squinting at the stadium with his one visible eye, just barely able to make out what was going on in the arena. Wincing as he watched the Hyuuga take another headbutt to the face, Jiraiya passed the spy glass to Kakashi, having seen all he needed to see.

"Unfortunately, no..." Jiraiya muttered in reply as he pulled out his note pad and started scribbling some thoughts down, having gained a few ideas for a new story from the lycanthropic genin in the stadium. Most of them were smut, like usual, but one of them wasn't; he doubted he would ever actually work on that one, though. Well, then again, he could... "So, I take it he's your student? Must be quite the handful."

"Actually, he's not that hard to handle. Most of the time." Kakashi replied, adding the second part as an after thought as he recalled that one week prior to the Chuunin Exams when Naruto had tried to rip the jounin apart for laughing at his teaching methods. He just kept watching as Neji was thrashed around like a rag doll caught in the jaws of a rabid rottweiller, a bored like in his lone eye; he had predicted as much. "...I wonder what Neji said to have made him so mad. I've never seen Naruto act like that."

"You didn't hear him? The Hyuuga called him a 'flea-bitten stray' and Naruto just snapped." Jiraiya replied, glancing up at the man. Giving Jiraiya a look of lazy surprise, Kakashi silently asked for details. "He started going on about how he wasn't going to tolerate everyone looking down on him and his people any more. He also mentioned his own history with Konoha's populace. Specifically, the ungrateful civilians..."

"..." Kakashi stayed silent as he returned to watching Naruto's fight with a serious look in his eye. It was true. Only the civilians had harrassed Naruto. The shinobi half of Konoha had nothing, but respect for the Kurotsuki and Shishisensou, who had always pushed ahead of the front lines to give their comrades a chance to rest or to simply crush the opposition in one massive blow. They had done the same thing almost eighteen years ago when the Kyuubi had attacked, buying the Yondaime enough time to prepare to seal the beast away once more. In those few short minutes, however, almost three hundred Kurotsuki were wiped out, one after the other...

"Stay...DOWN!" Naruto snarled as he backhanded Neji, sending him flying until he impacted the stone wall, bouncing off and hitting the ground. This time, he didn't try to get back up. Snorting as Genma checked the Hyuuga, Naruto shook his head to calm himself down, letting his Iron Fur technique fade away.

"Winner by knockout: Kurotsuki Naruto!" The jounin called out. The stadium was silent for several minutes and Naruto snarled quietly, only for the sound of clapping from one person to be heard. A few moments later, it spread like wildfire until it became a deafening roar. Snorting, Naruto turned around and walked through the stone doorway set in the side of the arena while a team of medic-nin rushed out to attend to the Hyuuga. Walking down the empty corridor, Naruto knew that he had reacted so fiercely and violently was because of his visit to the catacombs last night.

His clansmen were robbed of him by the Kyuubi, its container viewed as a hero despite the beast having slain several hundred people in the short few minutes of its rampage before the Yondaime transported it elsewhere and sealed it away. His mother had been taken by illness two years prior. His father had died fighting the Kyuubi alongside their people. The other families of the Shishisensou were destroyed in various ways all across the globe. Going down to the catacombs had ignited a fire in him that he had not felt for years. It was pride. Not arrogance, but the pure emotion of being proud of what he was and who he had become. He was proud of his father and fallen kin, of his fellow Shishisensou that had fallen throughout the course of histroy since the first of their people walked the earth.

"Disrespectful brat..." Naruto grumbled under his breath as he recalled Neji's state. He would be stuck in the hospital for quite some time due to his injuries. Snorting, Naruto headed up to where the other contestants were.

"Has he...always been like that?" Hana asked her friend quietly, having been able to tell that Neji had suffered several broken bones alongside a possibly severe concussion from the numerous blows the Hyuuga had taken to the head. She knew Naruto's combat habits; if his swords were out, he used kenjutsu. If they weren't, he was intending to use taijutsu and/or ninjutsu. However, if his swords had been visible a moment ago, why did he use only taijutsu?

"Unfortunately, yes. You might not know of this, but I've known him far longer than you think." Anko quietly responded, her eyes locked onto the towering lycan in question. "From the time he left the Inuzuka compound and started living in the forest to the day he enrolled in the Academy, Naruto rarely went into town, mostly due to his feral behaviour and dislike of those that often hunted him throughout the years. However, he had been cornered by some villagers one day, each of them drunk and unable to understand they had just cornered the offspring of the world's most dangerous clan. I had been in the area and came across them, but the look in his eyes stopped me from stepping in..."

"What do you mean?" Hana asked quietly, yet suspiciously, neither of them caring to pay attention to the match between Uzumaki Naomi and Kurozumi Hibara. Anko sighed quietly and rubbed the back of her neck before leading Hana away to the empty halls hidden within the stone complex behind the stands. She didn't want anyone over hearing.

"They had verbally taunted him and insulted him for some time, all while prodding him with a sharp stick. It didn't take very long before Naruto reached his boiling point and snapped..." Anko muttered softly, remembering everything that had happened that day. "It had all happened so fast. One minute, Naruto's cowering from them, trying to appear as non-threatening as possible. The next, he's nothing short of having gone completely feral, if not rabid. He killed three of the five men, crippled one for life, and left the last one to live the rest of his days on life-support machines and in a coma. Almost as soon as it was over, he calmed down and seemed a bit startled before taking off, disappearing into the forest again."

"Oh, my god...You can't be serious?" Hana inquired, only to be caught off guard by the presence of someone else.

"It's true. I saw it myself. _That's_ why I was so against you and him being together." Kiba spoke up from behind her, making both women turn around to face him. It had been almost a month and they hadn't seen him once, mostly due to the fact he had been out in the forest since they got back to Konoha two days ago. Prior to his departure, he had been about 5'6" in height, but now he was about 5'8" with a lean and muscular build, his dark brown hair reaching down to his lower back in a low pony-tail, his hair wild and untamed. He was dressed in a pair of black pants held up by a black leather belt with white cloth wrapped around his lower legs from his knees down to his ankles, more white cloth wrapped around his ankles and feet that left his heels and toes uncovered in the place of shoes, a black skin-tight sleeveless top with mesh sleeves that ended at his elbows, black elbow-length fingerless gloves on his forearms, and his Konoha hitai-ate tied around neck left bicep on a strip of black cloth.

"Kiba?" Hana whispered with wide eyes, caught off guard by how much her little brother had changed in the past month. Without warning, she suddenly threw her arms around him and hugged him. "Oh, my god! I'm so happy to see you! You've changed so much!"

"N-Nee-chan...Can't...Breathe..." Kiba gasped out with a pained look on his face, making Hana blink for a moment before releasing him, grinning sheepishly as she blushed and stepped back.

"S-Sorry...I, uh...I haven't gotten used to my strength yet..." Hana muttered apologetically. Had it not been for Naruto telling him a number of certain things, Kiba would have been incredibly confused by her statement. However, he knew about his sister being 'marked' by Naruto and while he had been rather pissed off by it, Kiba had come to accept it. "So, um...How did _this_ happen?"

"As much as I still hate Naruto for it, it's from his training. He gave me a foul-tasting vitamin of some sort that helped my hair grow quicker along with a few others that made my bones stronger and made me a bit taller as a side-effect." Kiba remarked, shivering with a grimace as he recalled the disgusting vitamins that had nearly made him puke the first time he took them. It also didn't help that they were obscenely huge pills. Standing beside him was Akamaru, who had been only about hip-high to him prior to the training he underwent and was now almost level with his waist, even after he had grown taller himself. Other than that, the only real change in Akamaru was the presence of three parallel scars on the left side of his muzzle, having been clawed by a snow leopard while they were in the northern mountains. Akamaru let out a soft whine as Kiba pet the large dog on his head. "He gave similar ones to Akamaru, too."

"Was that it?" Hana asked curiously, not hearing Kiba's mutterings of ill intent and curses cast under his breath. Seeing his facial expression as he grimaced and glared off to the side, though, Hana understood he hadn't exactly had 'fun' while they were gone. "Ah...That bad, huh?"

"So I was right! He's a slave driver!" Anko suddenly declared with a beaming grin, making Kiba scoff and cross his arms over his chest.

"Not even close..." Kiba grumbled, making Anko and Hana frown with confusion. "That bastard's idea of genjutsu training? Soukoutake."

"WHAT?! He has those?!" Anko suddenly bellowed with anger and jealousy. "That bastard needs to share! I shared mine with him last time!"

"Soukoutake? What are they?" Hana asked innocently, making Anko stare at her incredulously. Kiba only sighed and palmed his face at his sister's naivete. She may be older than him, but she knew almost nothing of the darker 'trends'; he only knew about them because of a few of his friends back in the Academy becoming druggies late into their attendence there, only to either drop-out or fail because of their habits.

"You...You've _never_ heard of soukoutake? They're only...the _greatest_ hallucinogenic mushroom out there! You'll be higher than a kite for _days_! It's soooo fun!" Anko answered energetically with a grin, only to suddenly shiver as the air temperature dropped a few degrees. Hana did _not_ look happy. Withering under the shorter and younger woman's glare, Anko grinned nervously as she waved her hands dismissively. "D-Did I say 'fun'? I-I meant 'bad'...Ehehehehe..." _'Oh, god...She's gonna kill me...'_

"He gave...my kid brother..._drugs_?" Hana hissed coldly, but before she could run down the hall in order to take her anger out on Naruto, Anko and Kiba had managed to grab onto her, keeping her from escaping, though it was incredibly difficult to hold her still. "LET ME GO! I'M GONNA KILL HIM!"

"Y-You can't do that, Hana-chan!" Anko called out, only to get elbowed in the face, stunning her pretty good, but not enough for her to let go. Kiba only grumbled more obscenities under his breath as he aided in restraining his older sister...

**xXxXxXx**

"Grr..." Growling quietly to himself, Naruto couldn't help feeling as if something was going to happen. Something bad. He had already spotted almost four dozen people in the stadium that were behaving strangely, he caught sight of almost a dozen ANBU standing guard in someareas, and his instincts just wouldn't stop screaming at him. Glancing down at the arena floor as both Naomi and Hibara were carted away by medic-nin, Naruto snorted quietly at the outcome of their match; double knock-out. That removed two genin 'heavies' from the line-up if a large-scale battle suddenly broke out as his instincts insisted upon.

"Subaku no Kankuro vs. Aburame Shino!" Genma called out, only for something unexpected to happen.

"Proctor, I forfeit!" Kankuro remarked, which was then mimicked by Temari a few minutes later, though she had a better excuse; her little brother, Gaara. Naruto's eyes narrowed with suspicioun as his lips curled into a silent snarl. Something wasn't right. Those two were headstrong and stubborn. They wouldn't forfeit a match so easily. Granted, the female's opponent was the Ichibi jinchuuriki and a mentally unstable one at that. Growling quietly to himself as Sasuke and Hinata were called down to the arena floor for their match, Naruto wanted to warn Hana and have her go somewhere safer, but...

"Uchiha Sasuke vs. Hyuuga Hinata! Begin!" Genma called out. Before either combatant would attempt an attack on the other, a smoke grenade went off in the Kage Booth while an explosion tore through the southern wall. A moment later, foreign shinobi began tossing their disguises before attacking various shinobi while a genjutsu was cast over the audience. The Suna genin disappeared from the balcony, prompting Naruto to snarl. Catching a glimpse of Hana with Anko and Kiba, Naruto jumped from the balcony while dragging his finger tip along his left bracer. In mid-air, Naruto was engulfed in smoke before hitting the ground and cracking the earth beneath him from his incredible weight, his body encased in his Brutal Fang armor.

**"Come on, you mongrels!"** Naruto bellowed as he unsheathed the wrist blades mounted in his gauntlets, the rockets on his armor roaring to life as he lunged at a cluster of Oto shinobi. **"Death awaits you!"**

Unable to react in time, Naruto slammed into the back of the first one, shattering his spine, while two others were skewered on his left wrist blade and a fourth was impaled through the chest with his right wrist blade. Spinning in place as he dug his feet into the ground and flared the rockets once more to halt his movements, Naruto tore his wrist blades from the corpses and slid to a halt just a couple feet from the wall of the arena. With a rocket-propelled jump, Naruto leapt from the ground all the way up to the roof of where the Kage Booth was on the opposite side of the stadium, landing just seconds after the translucent purple-hued barrier was thrown up by the disguised Orochimaru's four bodyguards.

**"AARRRGGH! OROCHIMARU!"** Naruto howled furiously, something that only caused the Snake Summoner to glance at him and smirk before focusing back on the Sandaime. Hearing something in the distance, Naruto turned around and saw a three-headed serpent to the south and the Ichibi to the west. He didn't have time to try to get back at Orochimaru. In plumes of smoke, Naruto was flanked by five clones. Splitting up into two groups of three, Naruto took his two clones in the direction of the Ichibi while his other clones headed straight for the three-headed snake. Crashing to the ground with booming thuds of a heavy impact, Naruto and his five clones all rolled forward, each one simultaneously executing one of his most powerful Inuzuka technique variations.

**"Tenga: Shiyoushin!"** Naruto and his clones called out before their armored bodies were encased in a combination of Fire and Earth chakra that covered them in a molten slag as Lightning chakra surged across their magma-coated bodies. At the same time, the rockets built into their armor fired at full-power, causing them to spin at almost ten times their normal speed. Uncaring of what got in their way and generally unable to avoid most of the obstacles anyways, all six living wrecking balls simply tore through anything that was in their way, including shinobi, walls, buildings. Anything and everything.

The trio of clones neared the snake summon and purposefully kicked off the ground, sending themselves flying through the air as the Brutal Fang rockets kept them from losing momentum. As one, each clone impacted one of the summon's three heads just as they all opened their mouths and bared their fangs with loud hisses. The clones landed in the jaws of each head, their revolving bodies of flames, electricity, magma, and steel easily shredding their flesh and tearing through their bodies, forcing the creature to return to where it came from lest it lose its life. Impacting the ground, the three clones went on to smash into the advancing lines of enemy shinobi.

Growling deeply as he grit his teeth in pain, Naruto pushed himself to keep going, his clones following suit as they continued forward, their creator launching himself into the air as they approached the Ichibi. His two clones ripped into the sand tanuki's feet and legs, causing the freed Bijuu spirit to howl in pain before Naruto suddenly slammed into its chest, fusing sand into glass and melting it into slag before it fused even more sand into glass and melted it down. Punching through the Ichibi's back and leaving a gaping hole in the beast's chest that oozed molten glass from the seering flames, Naruto hit the ground while still rolling around in his Tenga variation, only to suddenly loose control and unfurl, sending himself tumbling across the ground and smashing through several dozen trees from the sheer velocity he had been moving at. Similarly, his five clones lost control and ended up dispelling.

**"That damn...gnat..."** Shukaku snarled, its hands pushing off against the ground after having toppled forward from having its ankles severed. Engulfing the cooled and hardened molten glass in its sand, Shukaku began to grind it back down into grains of silica while repairing the damage done to it. Standing back up, the creature started looking around for the little bastard responsible for injuring it so...effectively. Normally, Shukaku wouldn't care, but to harm him so much in a single strike was worthy of his respect. And a swift death.

**"Nngghh..."** Groaning with pain, Naruto found himself unable to move while parts of his armor had been destroyed from his numerous impacts after losing control of his technique. The top right quarter of his helmet was destroyed, the armor covering his right hand and wrist was gone, the second half of the armor covering his tail was missing, the right side of his chest was exposed, and his left leg was visible from the of his thigh and down with only his toes and paw-like foot left armored. As for his body, he wasn't much better. His right shoulder was dislocated along with his left wrist, his right hand was completely broken, at least four...no, make that six ribs were cracked, at least one was broken, his left knee was dislocated, and his head was killing him. The rest of his body was undoubtedly heavily bruised.

Even now, his armor still glowed from the heat of his technique, the dented and mangled rockets spitting sparks and sputtering flames. If it hadn't been for his Tetsu no Kegawa, he probably would have ended up cremating himself prematurely, thus the name of the technique; Self-immolation. Fitting, but very dangerous to both the user and the target. Thus, Naruto had kept it a secret from everyone while personally labeling it as an S-rank kinjutsu.

**"Sh...Shit..."** Naruto hissed through clenched teeth as he squeezed his eyes shut, wincing painfully after barely moving his right foot. Thankfully, he was propped up against the smoldering ruins of a couple tree trunks just a couple feet into a small river. Unfortunately, that also meant he could see the giant clawed limb of sand reaching towards his position.

"Suiton: Suiryuudan!" A young woman called out before the water behind him suddenly rose and spiraled into a serpentine-form, only to lunge forward and smash into the Ichibi's extended hand, forcing it back and soaking the sand with water, rending it useless. Seeing an opening, Naruto over-powered his Tetsu no Kegawa with nearly five times as much chakra as usual, causing a shrill shriek of sound from his metallic fur rubbing against his armored body as he stood up, ignoring his wounds as he forced himself to his feet. His Iron Fur technique's healing ability started to take affect, but it wasn't strong enough to relocate his shoulder or his knee. They would prove bothersome and painful.

"Jyuuken!" Hinata suddenly called out from directly behind him before slamming her palm into the back of his right shoulder, popping the bone back in place as she spun around him and ducked down into a crouch, striking his left knee with another well-placed Jyuuken, relocating his knee. Snarling loudly as he suppressed the pain from having both joints fixed so suddenly and roughly, Naruto was still grateful while Hinata took off to deal with some nearby enemy shinobi. Glancing at his armor, Naruto knew that it would take a great deal of work to repair it and was now just weighing him down, but he figured it had one last assualt left in it. Tucking his left hand under his right arm, Naruto pinned it against his side before yanking on it, popping his left wrist back into place. He then clenched his right hand into a fist, resetting his broken bones and popping his dislocated knuckles back into place, flexing the appendage while growling with pain to ensure it would work for the moment.

**"Raiton: Shicuu Shibari!"** Naruto roared as he placed his hands together in front of him in his 'prayer' seal while two Kage Bunshin burst into existence via clouds of smoke, either one forming their own 'prayer' seal. As the four columns of rock rose to surround Shukaku and the 'caged' area suddenly exploded with Lightning chakra, the clone on his right began his own technique. Lurching forward and expelling just enough of lava to form a foot-wide puddle of the molten liquid on the ground, the clone charged its entire right arm with chakra, over-loading the Tetsu no Kegawa to the point its fur literally turned into metal. A moment later, it knelt down while thrusting its right arm into the lava up to its elbow, causing a massive limb of lava to burst from the ground in front of the Ichibi and grab onto the creature's chest and neck. **"Youton: Hakai no Migite!"**

**"Doto-"** The clone was cut short, however, when it was dispelled through the use of three kunai lodging themselves in the right side of his chest. Gritting his teeth and snarling, Naruto wisely formed another clone and had it take over the use of the Shicuu Shibari while he decided to take care of the new arrivals. Before he could attempt to remove them, Naruto watched as Hinata appeared directly behind the Oto shinobi, spectral lion heads of chakra forming over her hands.

"Juuho Soushiken!" The young Hyuuga heiress declared with fierce determination as she stepped forward while spinning, slamming both of her palms into the Oto jounin's back before he could avoid her attack. As the man was launched forward, Naruto spun in place as well, coating his left elbow in chakra.

**"Airon Erubou!"** Naruto bellowed while his elbow made contact with the side of the enemy shinobi's neck, sending him in a completely different direction while his neck was snapped from the force of the blow. Continuing the rotation as he caught sight of something at the last second, Naruto kicked off the ground and twisted his body, ignoring the pain of his busted ribs as the near-useless rockets on his armor sputtered to life for one last time. Landing beside the second Oto shinobi and spinning in place, Naruto swung his right hand around with his clawed fingers extended and pressed together for a palm thrust. **"Kokuhyou Shou!"**

"Shi-" The Sound jounin's curse was cut short as Naruto's hand made contact with the man's chest, caving in his ribcage and shredding the flesh of his chest as the now-dead ninja was thrown back with enough force to send him through a tree and slam into a second one behind it. Dropping to one knee, Naruto gripped his chest with agony, his eyes squeezed shut and lips curlsed in a snarl as he let out a deep, pained growl.

"Naruto-kun!" Hinata called out, running over to him and kneeling beside him. Byakugan flaring to life, Hinata could only gasp in shock as she finally took notice of how severely wounded he was. Eight ribs were cracked, two were broken, minor hair-line fractures dangerously close to his spine, a mild concussion, heavy bruising covering almost eighty percent of his body, and some minor internal injury. Not only that, but his right shoulder, left wrist, and left knee had been dislocated earlier and every bone in his right hand had been broken. "How...How are you still standing?"

**"...Kurotsuki...Don't...Stop...Until...The battle...Is over..."** Naruto snarled between ragged breaths, his eyes blazing with dedication as he slowly started to force himself back to his feet. A moment later, there was a loud and booming howl as the Ichibi finally reached its limit and was forced to retreat back into the seal on Gaara's body, Naruto's clones releasing their techniques and dispelling moments later. Dragging the tip of his right index finger along the unseen seal on his left gauntlet, Naruto reverted back to his Sharp Fang Mode, letting out a quiet sigh of relief as the immense weight of his Brutal Fang armor was removed from his heavily injured body.

"N-Naruto-kun, you need to rest. You're too badly hurt to keep fighting!" Hinata urged worriedly as Naruto started walking towards the area Gaara had fallen. Tears forming in her eyes, Hinata ran out in front of him, holding her arms out. "I said STOP!"

"..." Naruto could only stare down at her with surprise, only for his eyes to soften at the sight of her tears. Raising his left hand, Naruto dropped it on top of Hinata's head, smiling at her slightly. Even as she blushed a little, Hinata's determination to keep him from advancing didn't waiver, a few tears still falling from her pupil-less lavender eyes. Looking up and spotting the prone form of Gaara as the red head stared back at him with fearful eyes, Naruto simply stared back with fierce eyes, only to glance between Gaara's older siblings as they landed beside the exhausted and hurting jinchuuriki. Locking gazes with Gaara once more as Temari and Kankuro started to pick him up, Naruto let his eyes soften once more before nodding slightly.

"..." Gaara said nothing and let his older brother and sister take him away, too tired to move. As they left, he cast a minor glance at either sibling, his eyes narrowing in thought. Maybe killing wasn't the answer. If he killed everyone, who would be left to prove he existed? Maybe, to prove he existed, he should instead...protect them. He'll have to think about it more, first...

"Come on. Let's get back to the village..." Naruto muttered quietly before he started leading Hinata back towards Konoha, limping quite bit due to his left knee still hurting quite a bit. Drawing a sword with his left hand, Naruto made sure not to let his guard down despite his injuries. The invasion was still on-going...

**xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx**

Soukoutake- Red and Blue Mushroom

Tenga: Shiyoushin- Revolving Fang: Self-immolation

Suiton: Suiryuudan- Water Element: Water Dragon Projectile

Youton: Hakai no Migite- Right Hand of Destruction

Juuho Soushiken- Gentle Step Twin Lion Fist

Kokuhyou Shou- Mauling Palm


	8. Chapter 8

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.

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Beasts of War

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Chapter Eight

"..." Hana continued to cry quietly as she sat beside Naruto, who was lying in a hospital bed and unconscious. Having had to deal with Kurotsuki before in the past, Konoha's hospitals still had a supply of custom-made equipment they had used for them, but most of it was in storage. Some of that equipment included larger beds with greater weight capacities, special oxygen masks that fit over a Shishisensou's animal-like face, and various other things. Most of it had been made through the cooperation between doctors and veterinarians.

"How's he doing?" Kakashi asked quietly as the doctor in charge of ensuring Naruto's recovery walked up to him.

"I'm sorry, I've been too busy with my other patients to check on Kurotsuki-san's condition for the past couple days. Even then, there's no way to tell when he'll wake up from the coma." Takeshiro noted quietly as he adjusted his wire-frame glasses and watched as a female nurse entered the room and started checking the machines Naruto was hooked up to while Kakashi and Takeshiro observed through the window. "Alongside the head of Konoha's vet clinic, I have been Kurotsuki-san's personal doctor since he was a child and I was with his mother when she went into labor. I have faith that he will pull through. He is a fighter."

"You can say that again..." Kakashi muttered with a slight eye smile, only to frown slightly. It had been a week since the invasion. Naruto had lost consciousness just minutes away from reaching Konoha and had almost stopped breathing had it not been for Hinata. The Sandaime had given his life in order to seal Orochimaru's arms away, though the traitor behind the attack managed to escape. Many shinobi and kunoichi had been lost on both sides of the conflict. Suna was already requesting peace-talks, stating they had been tricked by Orochimaru into attacking them. Kiba, along with his partner Akamaru, had proven himself to be quite strong and powerful for a genin, having defeated several Suna and Oto shinobi while protecting Hana as Anko did the same. Despite being in the early stages of pregnancy, however, Hana was too stubborn to just sit back and had engaged the enemy as well. Without the Haimaru brothers, though, Hana wasn't able to put up as strong of a fight as she could and ended up getting hurt, but not critically.

As for the other genin, Sasuke and Sakura, amongst their former classmates, fought long and hard to protect the unconscious individuals in the stadium during the invasion, both having made several kills during the battle. While Sasuke wasn't bothered by it too much due to his familiarity with death, Sakura, however, was affected quite strongly, but Yamanaka Ino, Sakura's childhood friend, had taken her first life as well and the two were emotionally supporting each other. A few others had made their first kills as well, including Hinata, Kiba, and Chouji, each one dealing with it in their own way.

_'Maybe I should have Naruto talk to some of them about it once he's capable...'_ Kakashi mentally suggested to himself, though he was uncertain about it. Naruto was a Beast of War, but then again...that's probably exactly who they needed to talk to. _'It'll have to wait, though.'_

"...Thank you." Takeshiro muttered to the nurse as she handed him a clipboard with Naruto's updated information on it. Glancing through it, the doctor glanced up at the unconscious lycan and smiled faintly, a look of surprise shimmering in his eyes. "Well, it seems he might be recovering sooner than expected."

"What do you mean?" Kakashi inquired, confused. "I thought you said it would be about a month before he was fully healed?"

"Yes, but it turns out that his Iron Fur technique is still active, despite the fact he had fallen unconscious a week ago. Because of it's latent healing abilities, Naruto's injuries are healing much quicker than they normally would. Also, his brain waves read that he isn't comatose anymore; he's simply unconscious now. Almost like...an unforeseen hibernation, if you would. His Iron Fur technique went unnoticed due to the heavy drain on his chakra, resulting in very little healing being done, but now that he's started to recover that lost chakra, he's healing exceptionally well." Takeshiro explained as he continued to examine the papers and their contents. "If he continues at his current rate, he should wake up sometime in the next day or two and quite possibly be fully healed by the end of the week. However, it's not a gaurantee; just an educated guess. He could heal faster than that, he could heal slower. At this moment, I have no exact answer since he's never been in such a critical state and even now, I don't know the full extent of his Iron Fur's healing capabilities."

"I see...Thank you, Takeshiro-san." The jounin muttered before rubbing the back of his neck and walking away. It was going to be a long time before things started going back to normal, if at all...

**xXxXxXx**

As midnight neared, Naruto slept peacefully, the sounds of a woman humming a lullaby to him filling his mind, weaving his dreams. In such visions, he saw the back of what looked like a male humanoid wolf, much like himself, only dressed in samurai-like armor with two swords in his hands. The image warping and shifting, it became another lycan standing before him in a dark forest, this one a female with glowing markings covering parts of her body. Once more the image changed, this time showing another female silhouetted by the full moon. Suddenly, the woman stopped humming and he saw a great fire that was consuming everything, leaving only ash and bone and scorched earth in its wake. Standing amongst it was a massive lycanthropic being, one bigger than even himself. Throwing its head back, the great beast let out a booming roar up at the black sky. Sitting up in the hospital bed as he gasped for breath, Naruto could only stare at the far wall, his eyes wide with fear and shock as he continued to breath heavily, the heart monitor beside him beeping rapidly.

"Mmm..." Hearing a soft moan, Naruto looked off to the side to find Hana sleeping on the couch-like piece of furniture set off to the side. She still had some bandages wrapped around her entire right arm, her left forearm, and her right shin. Some more bandages were wrapped around her upper chest and neck. He smiled faintly, noticing how she curled slightly, clutching a wolf plushie in her arms as she drooled on it slightly. Finding the sight to be rather adorable, Naruto took a deep breath and calmed down before reaching over and switching off several of the machines he was hooked up to before pulling the tubes and wires out of his arms and off of his chest. Wincing slightly as he stood up from the bed, Naruto made his way over to where his things were, his left leg still aching and causing him to limp slightly.

_'What a strange dream...'_ Naruto thought to himself as he got dressed, idly glancing out the window to see the moon hanging in the sky. It was only about a quarter-full; that would leave him with about three weeks. Shaking his head slightly, he strapped his bracers to his forearms. _'Hmph. Stupid dreams.'_

Snorting quietly, Naruto finished dressing by tightening the straps to his leather harness, which held his armor and swords in place. Brushing a finger tip along his left bracer, Naruto switched to Yasei no Kiba before kneeling down beside Hana, wincing slightly from his aching body. Lightly brushing a lock of hair out of her face, Naruto smiled faintly before leaning down and lightly kissing her on the temple, standing back up with a bit of effort before leaving the room via the window.

"Mmm...Naru-kun..." Hana mumbled in her sleep, curling up a little more and nuzzling the wolf plushie in her arms with her cheek...

**xXxXxXx**

"Ngh...Naruuu...Turn off the lights..." Hana, still half-asleep, groaned as she curled up, covering her eyes with one arm in an attempt to block out the light. Hearing a gasp and a clipboard being dropped, Hana slowly opened her eyes and looked around, only to realize what had startled the nurse that had come to check on Naruto; Naruto was missing along with his belongings. Growling quietly to herself, Hana sat up on the couch. Injured or not, he was going to pay for leaving in the middle of the night without taking her with him. Taking notice of the plushie in her arms, though, Hana looked down at it and blushed heavily before stuffing it in the bag Tsume had brought her. It had been something Anko had bought for her in an attempt to keep the marked Inuzuka woman from constantly whining about being away from Naruto while he was training Kiba; much to the purple haired woman's annoyance, it only made it worse.

"Damn it, Naruto..." Hana grumbled under her breath before throwing the bag over her shoulder and exiting the room through the window. She decided to check the compound first, knowing her beloved hated hospitals. She could only hope he was smart enough to take it easy and not go straight back to training; even he couldn't be that dense. _'Could he?'_

"...Naruto?" Hana called out as she entered the compound, but her answer was silence. Making her way to Naruto's home, Hana dropped her bag on the couch and started looking around, but she couldn't find him. Finally deciding to check the catacombs, Hana went down to the basement and found the entrance to the catacombs left wide open, which was a pair of large and extremely heavy stone slabs. Each one was almost twelve feet tall, six feet wide, three feet thick, and easily weighed several hundred pounds, if not a full ton. Both doors had been pulled open, revealing the smooth stone walls of the stairwell leading deep below the house of the Kurotsuki clan head; which just happened to be Naruto, seeing as he was the last one.

"Hnnn..." Letting out a quiet whine since she really didn't like going down there, Hana internally debated going down before sighing heavily and forcing herself to go. It was the only way to be sure whether or not Naruto was down there. Then again, the doors were a dead give away; he never left them open whenever he wasn't down there and only he knew how to open them. Thankful for her enhanced golden yellow eyes, Hana was able to see clearly in the darkness of the lightless tunnel. After some wandering through the expansive network of tunnels and chambers that spanned the entire Kurotsuki compound, Hana finally came across the Kurotsuki clan's library. Among a great many other things, the library also contained a record of every Shishisensou to exist, having gathered the records and property of the other fallen Shishisensou clans and stored them in the Kurotsuki clan catamcombs over time. Though only a Shishisensou could read their literature, which was written in a completely different language than the that of the rest of the world, Naruto still hadn't wanted anyone to possibly 'crack the code', figuratively speaking.

"Oh, Naruto..." Hana muttered to herself, finding her beloved sitting at a desk, leaning against it and sleeping with his arms folded under his head. Walking over to him, she gently placed a hand on his shoulder and smiled at him, only to take notice of what he had obviously been looking at prior to falling asleep. Most of what sat before him was a bunch of old, if not ancient, sheets of paper that were tattered and feathered along the edges, having become almost brown with age. Stained upon them in black ink, however, was a great deal of writing and a handful of images drawn amongst the writing. One image, however, stood out amongst the others.

It was of a massive lycan howling up at the stormy sky with the bodies of several others, smaller in size, strewn about; dead. Having been marked and given the same 'eyes' as her beloved, Hana was able to translate the language, but just barely since she hadn't had enough time to learn the language itself. Below the image, she made out only a single name.

"Kurotsuki Kogarashi..." Naruto suddenly spoke up, startling Hana and making her let out a slight yelp of surprise. Slowly opening his eyes and sitting up, Naruto stared down at the hand-drawn image. "...The Great White Wolf."

"'Great White Wolf'? What do you mean, Naruto-kun?" Hana asked worriedly, noting the dark tone in Naruto's voice. Naruto simply narrowed his eyes at the image before sighing.

"It was many years ago, back when the the Shishisensou was only four clans, which became the four royal clans of the Shishisensou. Of the Kurotsuki clan, there was an incredibly powerful Alpha among them. He was taller than any other in our entire history, standing almost eight feet tall. He was stronger, faster, smarter, and far more brutal than any other as well. He was greedy, though. He wanted more. More territory, more females, more power. Eventually, he declared war against the other Shishisensou, but the Kurotsuki clan refused to follow him into a senseless war, resulting in Kogarashi's exile and banishment from the Shishisensou completely. It was only a couple years later when he returned and went on a rampage, slaying many in his year-long campaign against our lands." Naruto explained, retelling the lore of his clan's most hated traitor. Hana could only listen, her eyes wide with shock as she spaced out, her mind generating visuals for the story. "He had wiped out almost a third of each of the four clans on his own before he was finally struck down by the Kurotsuki Alpha that had succeeded Kogarashi. However, the Alpha had died moments after, succumbing to his own wounds. It is said that Kogarashi, having cursed the Shishisensou before his death, would rise once again to bring an end to all Shishisensou..."

"Good thing it's just a story..." Hana muttered as she shook her head and kissed Naruto on top of his head, only to notice the look in her lover's eyes, worrying her. "...Right?"

"...Come on. Let's get something to eat. I want to check on Kiba and make sure the runt isn't too badly hurt. He still has a long way to go in his training." Naruto mumbled as he stood up from the desk and led Hana out of the catacombs, blatantly ignoring Hana's question. As they stepped out of the catacombs, Naruto paused at the doors and turned around before grapsing them and sliding them shut, wincing slightly due to his muscles still being quite sore despite his bones having healed already; deep-tissue bruising was one of the things his Tetsu no Kegawa always struggled to heal. Carved upon the stone doors was the Kurotsuki clan fang markings with one fang on either door, the engraved images painted black upon the light grey stone.

As they went back upstairs and to the kitchen, Hana took it upon herself to cook them something for breakfast. As she did, a thought crossed her mind that had been bugging her since Naruto came back from training Kiba. Thus, she decided to voice her confusion while she remembered.

"Hey, Naruto? Can I ask you a question?" Hana asked softly, only making Naruto smirk faintly as he sat down at the dining room table in the next room, the table being big enough to seat roughly a dozen people, but only six by Kurotsuki standards.

"You just did." Naruto replied, making Hana glare at him over her shoulder with a slight blush. Laughing slightly, he leaned back in the chair. "I'm just teasing you. Go ahead."

"Jerk..." Hana mumbled under her breath as she turned back to the primarily meat-based meal; she couldn't get over the fact how much meat the both of them could eat. What was even stranger was the fact they were perfectly healthy, but that was mostly because not a single piece of meat was wasted. Especially when it came to anything they hunted down. If it was edible, they ate it. Still, she would sometimes add in other food groups, mostly for variety. Shaking those thoughts away, Hana focused back on her original thoughts. "When you got home that one day and heard me and mom talking about me being pregnant...Why didn't you seem very surprised?"

"Hmm..." Naruto hummed quietly as he stood up and walked over to her, gently wrapping his arms around her with one hand over her stomach, making the brown haired woman smile lovingly and lean into him, covering his hand with one of her own. "It was actually your recent changes that tipped me off, but I couldn't be sure."

"What do you mean?" Hana questioned with a look of confusion, looking up at him. Naruto smiled faintly and kissed her forehead, making Hana blush brightly and look back down, trying to hide her shy smile as she leaned back against him more fully, letting him support her.

"Your eyes, claws, and fangs. When it comes to Kurotsuki, a non-Kurotsuki female that has been freshly marked doesn't gain any of those traits until they've been impregnated. However, almost four out of ten times, it has proven false, so it's not exactly an accurate sign. The triplets just helped confirm it for me." Naruto explained before nuzzling her neck just under her left ear, making Hana smile, only for her to blush and shiver slightly with a quiet moan when he nudged the bite mark on her neck. Playfully jabbing her elbow into his ribs as a warning, Hana pulled away from him, pouting slightly. Shaking his head with a smile, Naruto simply pulled her back into his arms, resting his head on top of hers. "However, they're only the beginning."

"Huh? What are you talking about?" Hana questioned a little more forcefully, glaring at him slightly. "Why haven't you mentioned any of this before?"

"Because you never asked and I kind of forgot to tell you." Naruto muttered apologetically, making Hana sigh before standing up on her toes and giving him a chaste kiss, wanting him to explain. "Anyways, when you reach the three month mark, you'll experience another change, only this one is more...drastic. To put it simply, you'll transform into a female Kurotsuki."

"W-Wait...You mean..." Hana stammered out, completely ignoring the meat as she turned around and stared up at Naruto with wide eyes. When he nodded a little hesitantly, having not quite figured out how she would react, Hana gently placed a hand on her stomach while looking down, leaning against him. Still a little confused and uncertain, Naruto was about to attempt to console her, only for the shorter and slightly older female to suddenly look up at him with a warm smile, tears of joy falling from her eyes as she reached up and wrapped her arms around his neck. She then pulled him down and kissed him happily, surprising Naruto a little.

"..." Relaxing into the lip-lock and deepening it slightly, Naruto reached over and turned the stove off, moving the fully cooked meat over to let it cool down a little, only to focus back on the task at hand. Slowly wrapping his arms around Hana, Naruto lifted her up and sat her up on the counter off to the side, cradling the back of her neck and kissing her more passionately and lovingly. Moaning loudly into his mouth, Hana continued to shed tears of joy as she buried her fingers in the thick fur of Naruto's neck and on the back of his head. It was a few more minutes before they finally broke apart, leaving Hana gasping for breath and Naruto just mildly winded.

"So...You're not upset about it?" Naruto asked a little curiously, wanting to make sure she wouldn't try anything to get back at him; then again, she probably would anyways.

"Upset? Of course, I'm not upset. I'm happy!" Hana responded before drying her eyes and giving him another chaste kiss, her face split by a beaming grin. Then it became a slight frown of confusion, uncertainty, and concern. "...I wonder how mom's going to take it, though...I mean, I'm not going to be her little Flower anymore..."

"Don't worry about that, Hana. You'll have to wait until after the pups are born, but I'll teach you how to change back into a human form." Naruto answered, confusing Hana.

"Wait, what do you mean by 'Pups'? I thought it was only one, so why are you stating it as if it's going to be multiple?" Hana asked, tilting her head curiously and a bit suspiciously. When combined with her wide, amber eyes and the slight frown still present on her face, Naruto couldn't help finding the look irresistibly cute on her. Laughing quietly in his throat, Naruto shook his head and kissed her forehead, making her blush again.

"It's actually quite rare for Kurotsuki pairs to have only one or even just two pups. The average size litter for females is usually anywhere between three and even nine pups." Naruto answered, making Hana's eyes widen with shock.

"N-N...N-NINE?! Are you kidding me?! That can't be possible!" Hana exclaimed, only making Naruto laugh again, this time a little louder than before. Punching him in the chest out of frustration and slight irrational fear, she glared at him heatedly. "It's not funny, Naruto! I'm not that big of a woman! I can't just pop out _nine_ kids all in one go! Child birth hurts like hell, you know?! Not only that, but there's only so much the human body can take!"

"Hahaha! Don't worry, Hana." Naruto responded before kissing the woman lovingly, making her gradually relax again. "Everything will be alright. It was only an example. There's honestly no telling how many you'll be having until you're almost six months along. Besides, by that time, you'll have transformed and you'll be a much bigger and more durable woman. Kurotsuki females, born or turned, were known to be incredibly fertile. Naturally, the female body of the Kurotsuki clan has adapted over the years to better suit such large litters. Not only that, but you don't have to worry about the babies being bigger than a normal human's. They're not much bigger and are actually easier to care for than you think."

"...You sound like you've done this before..." Hana growled out him stubbornly with a pout, still not enjoying the idea of being a mother to nine kids at one time. Sighing while still smiling, Naruto shook his head slightly before pulling two plates from the cupboard behind Hana and holding a plate out to her. Taking it as Naruto stepped back, Hana hopped down from the counter and started putting half of the food on her plate before handing it back to Naruto, who passed her the other plate, which was then loaded down with the other half. The whole time, Hana still had her bottom lip sticking out and brow furrowed slightly with a heavy pout.

"Oh, stop sulking. It won't be that bad, love." Naruto reassured. "And I'll have you know that I _have not_ done this before. I simply memorized everything about my clan back when I was in the Academy. The reason I know so much is because my mother was a very talented clan doctor and had written several of the clan's newer medical books herself. She even donated a lot of her own time and money into the veterinary clinic your clan runs. She was also one of the rare few to have only a single pup..."

"...She sounds like she was an incredible woman..." Hana muttered softly as she gently touched Naruto's arm, noticing the nearly invisible look of pain flashing across his face. Smiling slightly with a brief nod, Naruto followed her back to the dining room table after grabbing some silverware for them; thankfully, they were steel. While silver didn't exactly prove fatal to them or anything, Kurotsuki all had a genetic mutation that cursed every last one of them with an allergy to the metal. It could cause anything from a nasty burn to a fierce sickness to even just some soreness and tenderness in the area of contact. Ingestion, however, proved fatal ninety-eight percent of the time, depending on how much was ingested. Sighing quietly as he sat down and pushed those thoughts aside, Naruto passed Hana her silverware before they started eating...

**xXxXxXx**

"Damn, runt...You got yourself torn up, didn't you?" Naruto muttered as he entered the hospital room Kiba was in via the window with Hana right behind him. He didn't want to deal with the hospital staff, who would undoubtedly try to get him strapped back down in a bed until they cleared him themselves. Propped up against some pillows in the bed, Kiba could only glare at the wolf-man. His left leg was encased in a cast from his toes to the middle of his thigh and suspended, her torso bandaged to keep his broken and cracked ribs from getting any worse, a harness brace wrapped around his torso over the bandages to keep his spine straight so as not to worsen the minor hair-line fractures a few of his vertabrae suffered, his right arm was stuck in a sling and heavily bandaged, and his left hand and wrist was encased in another cast.

"Shut up...This only happened because I was trying to protect my sister." Kiba growled back, making Naruto snort quietly. While grateful that he would protect Hana so avidly, Naruto was also a little disappointed in him for getting so heavily injured. "Luckily, Akamaru wasn't hurt too bad...All he got was a sprained ankle and a couple minor cuts."

"That's because he actually listened to me." Naruto retorted with a mildly annoyed tone, making Kiba growl at him again, only to wince with pain. Hana sighed and nudged Naruto in the ribs with her elbow, glaring up at him. Sighing heavily, Naruto decided to take it easy on the boy. As strong as he was, Naruto was injured and he had no doubt in his mind that Hana would be able to outdo him in physical strength at the moment. Not only that, but she'd probably help the hospital staff strap him down into a hospital bed and keep him there for who knows how long. "...You did good, runt."

"Hmph. Thanks, I guess..." Kiba mumbled back, glaring off to the side while Hana sighed quietly and shook her head. Even after the Alpha's Duel and everything that's gone on since then, the two still got along as well as cats and dogs...and they were both canine-oriented! Then again, Wolves and Dogs never did get along very well, but that was mostly due to conflicting territories or food or something.

"...Did you hear about the Hokage?" Kiba inquired softly, his glare fading as he gazed out the open window. Naruto slowly tilted his head down and stared at the floor, his hands slowly clenching into fists. Nothing had to be said after that. The Sandaime had been like a grandfather to everyone in the village, caring for them and watching over them at all times. It affected Naruto more than anyone else because the elderly man had been just that to him in many ways after the destruction of his clan.

_'That bastard...When I get my hands on that snake, I'm gonna-'_ Naruto's thoughts were interrupted when he felt a hand on his arm, snapping him out of it and looking over at Hana, who looked incredibly worried for him. Taking a deep breath, Naruto shook his head before leaving.

"Don't." Kiba spoke up, stopping Hana from following after him. "Give him some time alone. He'll be fine."

"I'm worried about him, Kiba." Hana admittedly quietly as she sat down at the edge of her brother's hospital bed, her gaze downcast and a little depressed. "He's been so stressed out and busy recently. He's barely had any time to just relax and enjoy himself. I'm afraid he might end up hurting himself because of it..."

"I know, sis." Kiba responded gently while giving her a small smile. His eyes then narrowed as he growled quietly. "Now, what's this I hear about you being pregnant?"

"H-How did you find out?" Hana asked with surprise, her eyes wide as she stared at her kid brother. At that moment, she remembered their mother's behavior concerning the topic and figured he had probably over heard her talking and giggling to herself about it.

"Aha! I knew it! I'm gonna kill that bastard!" Kiba roared as he tried to move, only to wince and let out a brief cry of pain. Reluctantly resigning himself to his fate, Kiba glowered at the far wall. "After I heal, that is..."

Hana could only sigh at her brother's antics, letting out a slight groan of annoyance. Of course he would use such a cheap trick to get information out of her. Oh, well. It wasn't like she could keep it a secret from him forever, no matter how much she wished it possible...

**xXxXxXx**

_'Stupid old fool...'_ Naruto thought to himself as he sat atop the stone carving of the Sandaime's face on the Hokage Monument. Despite the apparent insult, Naruto couldn't help feeling proud of the elderly man that had become something akin to an actual grandfather to him over the years. When Naruto was still living in the forest prior to enrolling in the Academy and moving back into the Kurotsuki compound, the Sandaime would often go looking for him, but not to bring him back. He would come to simply visit and ensure he was doing okay, sometimes even leaving him scrolls and books to read about chakra control and taijutsu and a number of various other things. He would also stop by and bring Naruto other things like certain foods he knew Naruto liked, but couldn't get while in the forest or even bring him some form of clothing.

"..." He remained silent as he stared out at the village of Konoha, his eyes catching sight of the glaringly obvious paths he and his clones had taken upon putting the Tenga: Shiyoushin technique to use. Each of the six paths were nearly a meter deep and two meters wide, the severe heat and power behind the technique having melted the earth into slag that quickly cooled and formed crude trenches of blackened stone that were incredibly smooth on the inside. Not only that, but any building that had been caught in the path of Naruto and his clones had been razed, though a couple had surprisingly remained, but those had only been clipped.

He could see a large number of people working to rebuild the damaged southern section of Konoha's defensive wall, others tearing up the trenches left by his Shiyoushin as well as clearing the rubble of the numerous buildings that had been damaged or outright leveled, and yet more people were working on repairing the stadium where the Sandaime had battled Orochimaru, who had ressurected the Shodaime and Nidaime to aid him in battle. Naruto could only growl quietly at the thought, knowing that the vile snake was disrespecting the dead so carelessly. Granted, the Edo Tensei kinjutsu was a creation of the Nidaime, if his memory served him right, but still...it was a forbidden technique for a reason.

_'You really were a legendary ninja, weren't you?'_ Naruto thought to himself with a sad smile as he lightly placed his right hand atop the stone visage of the deceased Sandaime, refering to the meaning of Sarutobi, which also translated into Flying Monkey. He frowned slightly, realizing he had lost his source of wisedom and moral support. In the past, it had been Hiruzen that had saved Naruto from falling into the darkness and giving into his Inner-Beast, a curse all Shishisensou suffered from that took the form of a mental manifestation of the animal they most closely resembled. If consumed by that manifestation, they become nothing more than a rabid beast of immense strength that ran on pure instinct. For a Kurotsuki, it was worse due to their near perfect memory, greater strength than most of other clans, and their habit of holding a grudge until death.

"..." Without looking away from the village, Naruto maintained his vigilance while Sasuke sat down on his right side while Sakura sat down on his left side. Neither team mate said a word to him and didn't even glance at him, simply choosing to sit beside him silently and stare out over Konoha as well. For hours, they sat there in silence, watching as the village continued to buzz with activity, though subdued by the death of not only the Sandaime, but many Konoha shinobi as well. It wasn't until the sun was half-hidden by the far horizon that the silence was broken.

"I heard you made your first kills during the invasion..." Naruto stated quietly without looking towards either of his team mates. He didn't need to in order to see them flinch slightly at the comment. It was to be expected. "Do not think of it as taking someone's life. Think of it as protecting the lives of those that person could kill. Think of it as protecting another from having to live on with such a burden..."

"...Is that what you do?" Sasuke asked, his voice quiet and almost emotionless as he stared off into the ditance with a blank look in his eyes. Taking a deep breath while closing his eyes, Naruto exhaled through his nose.

"...Is there something wrong with that?" Naruto countered calmly as he slowly cracked his right eye open and stared down at Sasuke, the Uchiha unresponsive to his question. Turning his attention over to his female team mate, Naruto noted that Sakura had drawn her knees up to her chest, her arms wrapped around her legs and her head bowed, leaving only her eyes visible above her knees. He also saw that she had dark bags under her eyes, tears welling up in their corners as she struggled to maintain her composure, however fragile it already was. Slowly reaching out, Naruto wrapped his arm around her and pulled her close. Almost instantly, Sakura had buried her face against his chest while throwing her arms around him. Her body shaking savagely as she sobbed into his chest, Sakura could do nothing more than cling to him as she cried.

_'...This is why I am the way I am...'_ Naruto thought sadly as he silently cradled the small female against him, wordlessly consoling her. Many thought him unstable and savage when he made his first kill and felt no remorse, but that was because Naruto had already prepared himself, mentally, knowing he would have to take a life. All just so he could keep someone else from staining their hands with the blood of another. Even now, Naruto could remember the face of every person he had ever killed, with the exception of those he plowed through during the invasion, his Shiyoushin making it very difficult to see anything.

"..." Sasuke stayed quiet, instead choosing to get into the lotus position and meditate. Since he had made his first kill and several others last week, he had experienced a handful of nightmares about the Uchiha Massacre, only it was from his brother's perspective. More specifically, it had been _Sasuke_ that had slain the Uchiha in such nightmares and not Itachi. They were most...unsettling, to say the least.

"Kurotsuki-san." An ANBU suddenly spoke up from behind them, making Sasuke's eyes snap open with a start while Sakura visibly flinched at his sudden surprise, only to try to bury herself into Naruto's fur as she continued to cling to her lycanthropic that she had come to see as an older brother. Naruto didn't react, having sensed the chakra from the man's Shunshin before the masked shinobi's arrival. "The Council wishes to speak with you."

"Thank you. Tell them I'll be there momentarily." Naruto responded before the ANBU nodded and disappeared via Shunshin. Sighing heavily, Naruto could only imagine what they wanted now. Looking down to Sakura, Naruto gently rubbed her back, only for the distraught girl to reluctantly pull away from him.

"G-Go...I'll be fine..." Sakura muttered weakly, drying her eyes. Seeing his look of hesitance, Sakura suppressed her emotions and glared at him slightly. "Go."

"Alright...I'll stop by your apartment later to check on you." Naruto reassured her calmly as he stood up before vanishing in a Shunshin of his own, leaving his team mates behind...

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Kogarashi- Cold Wintry Wind


	9. Chapter 9

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.

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Beasts of War

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Chapter Nine

"Where the hell is that pervert?" Naruto growled under his breath as he stood at Konoha's South Gate, his arms crossed over his chest with impatient annoyance and irritation at the whole ordeal to begin with. Last night, he had been informed by Konoha's Emergency Committee, formed due to the absence of a Hokage, that he was to join one Jiraiya of the Sannin alongside the man's chosen apprentice in their search for Tsunade. While greatly annoyed by the mission, Naruto knew he was in no place to refuse, especially after they had bumped him up to chuunin. Since the Suna/Oto Invasion had been considered a 'war-time' event, Naruto, for taking down both the Ichibi no Tanuki and the three-headed snake summon on his own, had been promoted.

Not only that, but it turns out he was being unwillingly placed in the middle of the new alliance negotiations between Konoha and Suna...

_'Still doesn't make this any better...'_ Naruto mentally growled. He didn't want to be away from Hana for too long. She was going to reach the three month mark in about two months and while it was a great deal of time until then, Naruto knew that the mission to search for Tsunade was going to take quite some time. Probably a month at minimum. Finally spotting the white haired sage and the over-excitable blonde he had met during the preliminary matches, Naruto narrowed his eyes and snorted.

"Ah, there you are!" Jiraiya called out with a broad grin. "We were just talking about you."

"..." Naruto stayed silent as he stared down at the shorter male, his amber eyes narrowed with annoyance. Before Jiraiya could say anything, Naruto turned on his heel and started walking, almost hitting Naomi in the head with his sheathed swords as he did. However, they took notice of a third sword present on Naruto's body. It was a short three and a half foot long sword with a black iridescent guard. Jiraiya instantly recognized it as Inuhoozuki, the Kurotsuki clan's most prized possession and one of the world's eleven deadliest swords. Those eleven swords were the seven swords used by Kiri's Seven Swordsmen, the Kusanagi currently used by Orochimaru, the Raijin no Tsurugi once wielded by the Nidaime Hokage, the Inuhoozuki, and the Inuhoozuki's twin, the Nokanzou.

"H-Hey, wait up!" Jiraiya called out while jogging after the towering wolf-man, practically dragging Naomi behind him as he did. "What's with the bad attitude and the silent treatment? I didn't do anything to you."

"...You kept me waiting for more than an hour. I don't know about you, but I have important business that needs to be completed as soon as possible." Naruto responded coldly without looking at the white haired man, keeping his eyes locked on the horizon instead. "I would much rather do this on my own. It would prove much quicker and more effective."

"Oh? And how do you figure that? Do _you_ have a spy network?" Jiraiya questioned with an annoyed glare, a bit of arrogance slipping into his tone. Snorting, Naruto mentally cursed whoever stuck him with the over-grown child that was Jiraiya.

"No, but I have a powerful sense of smell as well as hearing. Not only that, but I can continue to move around without requiring much rest. Also, I won't be forced to take roads since I know these lands very well and living in the forest is more comfortable to me than any man-made settlement." Naruto responded. "Also, it is called the power of deduction. What are Tsunade's vices? Gambling and drinking. Thus, the first target location would be a town well-known for its gambling dens and bars. However, the greater its infamy, the less likely she'll be there due to having already gained a rather high debt in that particular region. Ergo, we start half-way down the list."

"And that would be?" Jiraiya inquired while Naomi pouted off to the side, having been left out of the conversation completely, but then again, she didn't exactly have anything useful to add. Sighing heavily, Naruto glared down at Jiraiya with annoyance, finding the man to either be stupid or just trying to difficult.

"You really must learn how to operate as a predator if you're going to continue to operate as a spy and survive." Naruto growled quietly before looking forward again, ignoring the glare he got in response to his veiled insult. "First, what do your spies say?"

"Otafuku Gai." Jiraiya remarked, blinking up at the chuunin. Snorting again, Naruto rolled his eyes.

"Well, maybe you aren't as incompetant as I originally thought..." Naruto growled out under his breath, but it was still heard by the intended target.

"HEY!" Jiraiya spat angrily and indignantly...

**xXxXxXx**

"..." Hana stayed silent as she laid in bed, wearing only her black panties and Naruto's sleeveless black shirt, which was huge on her. It had been almost two weeks since Naruto had left and Hana had missed him more and more with every passing day, craving the warmth of his body beside her's at night. By the fourth night, however, Hana had been unable to take it any longer and turned to her two friends. One was Hinata, who Hana considered to be both Naruto's and her own fiance since the young girl was to be apart of their life equally, but only after she becomes of age. The second had been Anko. Hana had originally just planned on spending her time with them and maybe spend the night with Anko every once in awhile, only to be caught off guard when Hinata offered to stay with her until Naruto got back.

"Mmm...Hana-chan..." Hinata mumbled in her sleep, cuddling closer to Hana and nuzzling the older woman's chest before going still once more. Smiling warmly, Hana held Hinata close and gently kissed the top of her head. Hinata was similarly dressed as herself, wearing only a royal purple thong and a tight fitting midriff-bearing black tank top. Hana couldn't help blushing a little with smirk as she glanced at Hinata's choice in undergarments. She had been thoroughly surprised by the fact that such a shy and timid Hyuuga girl would wear something so bold. Then again, Hinata had proven herself quite passionate and...lustful.

Hana's blush suddenly darkened when Hinata pressed closer to her, her leg sliding between her own and unknowingly rubbing against her clothed womanhood. Biting her bottom lip and forcing herself not to lose control, Hana took a deep breath and finally managed to calm down. It was bad enough that Naruto had practically banned sex until after the pups were born, but for her to be experiencing frequent and often intense spikes of arousal at all hours of the day was just too much for her. Especially when she had such a _delicious_ female in bed with her...

_'Stop it, Hana. You know better. It's bad enough you slept with her once already.'_ Hana mentally scolded herself before looking down at the girl. Mentally whining with complaint and need, Hana wondered why she actually agreed to let her stay when she could have just stayed over at Anko's apartment until Naruto returned. When Hinata shifted her position a little, Hana actually whined quietly due to the Hyuuga girl's thigh being firmly pressed into her while Hinata's hand rested on her rear, gripping the cheek gently as Hinata nuzzled her breasts again. _'Daaamn iiit...If only she were older, I wouldn't be in such a tormenting situation...'_

"Mm...Hana..." Hinata muttered quietly, looking up at Hana with hooded eyes. The marked Inuzuka could only stare at Hinata while the younger girl rolled over onto Hana, lying on top of her while starting to purposefully rub her thigh against Hana's crotch, making her moan loudly. Before she could try to stop her, Hinata pinned Hana's hands above her head with one hand before kissing the older woman. Unable to resist despite being more than strong enough to fend the girl off, Hana kissed her back, moaning softly again. That is, until she felt Hinata's other hand slide under her shirt and caress her left breast, causing her to gasp slightly and moan again.

"H-Hinataaa...We...We shouldn't be d-doi-" Hana's weak protest was cut short when Hinata kissed her again, this time forcing her tongue into her mouth while pressing her thigh against the older woman, still rubbing against her as she released Hana's wrists and slipped her other hand under the amber eyed woman's shirt, fondling and groping both of her breasts.

"Who's going to find out?" Hinata whispered while staring into Hana's eyes once they broke apart for air. Without answering, Hana suddenly smashed her lips against Hinata before rolling over on top of the smaller and younger female, unable to believe she was actually going through with it. She could only hope Naruto wouldn't be too mad at them before focusing back on the current task; undressing the Hyuuga girl beneath her...

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"Moron..." Naruto mumbled to himself after watching Jiraiya get pummeled into the earth by the women he had been peeping on. Shaking his head, Naruto walked back towards the town, having changed into his human form in secret after slipping away from Jiraiya and Naomi. It had been almost a month since he left and they were just finally reaching Tanzaku Gai, which was only number six out of twenty on Naruto's list of possible locations. Naomi was busy trying to figure out the Rasengan and Jiraiya, as predicted earlier, was occupied with his..._research_. It was also because of the old fool's peeping that it was taking them so long and it was all because he couldn't pass by a single bathhouse or hot spring without peeping on them for a _minimum_ of four hours.

_'Stupid lech...'_ Naruto thought to himself as he walked into the town wearing a pair of baggy black pants with white cloth wrappings around his ankles and feet with his toes and heels left uncovered, more white cloth wrappings around his hands and forearms with his fingers and thumbs left uncovered, a skin-tight light grey sleeveless shirt, and a dark grey sash wrapped around his waist. Smirking faintly to himself as he walked through the streets, Naruto was glad to have finally finished creating the Getsumenshou technique, allowing him to change between his normal lycanthropic form and his human form without any problems like the normal transformation, which involved the body physically changing and it was far from being comfortable or pleasant.

"Hm?" Naruto paused for a moment, turning his attention towards the north side of Tanzaku, only to realize something wasn't right. Wasn't there supposed to be a castle? Jumping up onto the nearest building, Naruto made his way towards the castle's supposed locaiton, only to find the rubble of its demolished form where it once stood. Placing his hands together in his 'prayer' seal, Naruto was engulfed by a cloud of smoke before it cleared a moment later, revealing him in his lycanthropic form and clad in his Feral Fang armor. While he could track just as well in his human form as he could in his lycan form, he was without his armor and weapons while using Getsumenshou, leaving him quite vulnerable if he were to suddenly be engaged in combat. He then noticed a destroyed section of a wall that seemed out of place due to being a almost fifty meters south of the collapsed castle with no other signs of destruction elsewhere.

"Something's not right..." Naruto mumbled to himself as he dropped down to the ground. It was almost impossible to ignore the scent of snake that filled the air, but he somehow did while suppressing his rage towards Orochimaru. Crouching down near the collapsed wall, Naruto sniffed the air around it and found the scent of a female of advanced age while just next to it was the scent of another female, this one younger and probably no more than thirty years old. Oddly enough, there was also a pig, a small one.

"Tsunade was here..." Naruto mumbled to himself before glancing over at something across the street as light reflected off of it. Walking over, he found five thin metal needles with a purple-ish residue on them. Sniffing them once, Naruto narrowed his eyes as he discovered it to be poison and highly potent, at that. Glancing back over at the gap in the wall and then back at the needles, Naruto sniffed the air where he was at and found not only Orochimaru's scent, but also Yakushi Kabuto's.

"Any idea what happened here?" Jiraiya inquired from above the lycan, but Naruto didn't respond or even acknowledge the fact the Sennin's clone was even present. Finally standing up fully after a couple minutes of contemplation, Naruto glanced around the area one last time to ensure he didn't miss anything.

"...Tsunade and a young woman came through here earlier, possibly sight-seeing. Orochimaru arrived, crushing the castle with a large snake summon, I believe. After that, the summon was dispelled and both he and Kabuto stood here." Naruto remarked pointing down at the ground just beyond the needles before pointing across the way. "Tsunade and the other female were standing there. Judging by the hole in the wall and the lack of anyone else's scent, Tsunade is the one responsible for causing that damage, no doubt as an act of intimidation or out of anger. The young woman threw these poisoned senbon, most likely at Orochimaru, only for Kabuto to step between them and deflect the needles. There's a couple drops of blood where Orochimaru was standing, being Orochimaru's blood, so I'm guessing the man either cut himself or bit himself to draw blood, resulting in Tsunade's hemophobia paralyzing her temporarily and allowing both Orochimaru and Kabuto to escape. Judging from the strength of the scents and their general direction, I'd say it's been about two or three hours since. Chances are, Tsunade is still here in Tanzaku."

"Wow...You got all that from so little?" Jiraiya asked curiously, his eyes opened a little wider than normal out of surprise. Snorting, Naruto crossed his arms over his chest and glared up at the Sennin's Shadow Clone.

"I'm a Kurotsuki. Our sense of smell is greater than even natural wolves and the Inuzuka clan. Not only that, but we can detect even the emotion someone is feeling by scent alone." Naruto responded sharply, making Jiraiya's eyes widen a little more. "Then there is the fact that none of the evidence has been tampered with by anyone passing through here since the castle's destruction mostly due to everyone being scared off by the snake summon's presence earlier, so I got lucky there. Also, most of the evidence is pretty straight forward."

"Impressive." Jiraiya remarked as he dropped down beside the white-grey furred Kurotsuki. Snorting, Naruto turned and started walking away from the clone. "Hey, where are you going? We still need to find Tsunade-hime."

"Find her yourself. It's getting late and I'm starting to get hungry." Naruto called back over his shoulder before leaving the area, managing to slip out of the town without being seen. Returning to the forest, Naruto relaxed and let his eyes close, focusing on his sense of hearing and smell to locate something he could hunt that would have enough meat on it for his dinner with plenty left over for him to store for another time. Catching the scent of a deer, a buck, Naruto kept his eyes closed and concentrated on which direction it was in, soon finding it to be just east of him. Dropping down onto all fours, Naruto swiftly ran through the forest, his paw-like hands and feet creating almost no sound on the forest floor as he headed towards his prey.

Spotting the rather large buck, Naruto didn't hesitate and pushed himself to move even faster, heading straight for the animal from behind on its left. Coming within twenty feet of it, Naruto lunged. Before the buck had a chance to attempt an escape or retaliate, Naruto's jaws were already wrapped around its neck while his claws dug into its hide, using his immense weight to pull it down to the ground and on its side as it let out a bleating cry of pain and fear. With an experienced motion, Naruto snapped the deer's neck and silenced it for good before finally letting it go. Smirking slightly, Naruto grabbed the carcass by its anklers before lifting it up and carrying it elsewhere. He had a habit of not eating where he hunted, knowing that the smell of death would drive most prey animals away from the area while attracting only other predators, mostly the hungry ones or scavengers and he hated being bothered by them whenever he was eating.

Deciding to take shelter in a small cave for the night since it was right next to a stream and it was starting to get dark out, Naruto dropped the dead deer in front of it and made sure the cave was clear before making his way over to the trickling water flow and using it to clean the blood off his armor. Once it was clean, he walked back up to the cave and took his armor off, leaving it in a neat pile off to the side before suddenly biting down on the deer's neck and pulling, ripping the body's hide open and exposing the meaty flesh of his throat. Without pause, Naruto bit into the red meat before biting down as hard as he could and tearing out a mouthful of flesh, his muzzle stained with blood as he chewed the bloody hunk of meat for a couple moments before swallowing it, only to lean back down and bite into it again.

_Snap!_

"...Grrr..." Glancing up with a quiet growl, Naruto glared out in the direction the noise had come from, his ears folded back aggressively as his lips curled into a slight snarl. Sniffing the air would be useless for him, the smell of blood being too heavy around him. Instead, he would have to keep an eye out. After a couple minutes of silence after that, Naruto leaned down to keep eating, only for him to catch sight of something familiar and yet shocking at the same time as it stumbled out from the brush just across the stream. Standing up, Naruto's eyes widened slightly in surprise.

Standing on the other side of the river was a female lycanthrope that looked to be about 6'6" and about his age, if Naruto's guess was right. Her entire body was covered in shadow-black fur darker than any moonless night, her irises were an incredibly bright silver, and she had rather thick and long black fur on top of her head between her wolf ears and on the back of her neck that hung down to just below her shoulder blades. She was dressed in only a pair of blue shorts that had once fit her and were now far too far on her, made apparent by the numerous tears and rips in them along with the fact they conformed to her skin as it rippled faintly from her muscles, while the torn and tattered remains of what had once been a white tank top was wrapped around her chest and just barely containing her rather large basket-ball sized breasts, the strips of cloth that had once been the shoulder straps now hanging limply at either side.

"..." Naruto was about to speak up when the female fainted, her eyes suddenly rolling up in her head before she started falling forward. Pushing chakra into his legs, Naruto raced forward and just barely managed to catch her before she could hit the ground. Biting back a slight curse as he nearly fell over, Naruto was kind of surprised by her weight, but it wasn't anything of a problem for him. Sighing heavily, Naruto carried the female over to the cave he had chosen to stay in and gently laid her down on the stone floor inside. Stepping back, Naruto scratched the back of his neck and sighed once more. "I just know this is going to come back and bite me in the ass later..."

Huffing slightly, Naruto turned around and headed a short ways into the forest, gathering some firewood. Coming back a few minutes later with a sizable bundle of dead and broken branches cradled in his arms, Naruto shoved the partially eaten buck with his foot before kneeling down and setting the gathered wood down. As he went about starting a simple fire out in front of the cave, Naruto glanced back at the female and smiled faintly, noticing how she rolled over onto her side and curled up slightly. Standing back up once he got the fire going, Naruto stepped off to the side before heading down to the stream for a moment, feeling a bit thirsty. Not a minute later, Naruto heard something behind him and glanced back towards the cave to find the female biting into the deer's neck, struggling for a few moments before finally managing to bite off a mouthful of flesh.

"Yep...It's starting already..." Naruto muttered quietly to himself before standing up and making his way back. As he neared, however, the female gave a slight start and stared up at him almost fearfully, having frozen in place after having just bit back into the buck's flesh. At that moment, he realized that she was either completely feral for some reason or she was just scared out of her mind. It was quite possible it was both, too. Mentally whining, Naruto walked around to the other side of the cave entrance, sitting down opposite of where the carcass was. "It's okay. Go ahead. I, uh...I wasn't all that hungry, anyways."

After a moment, she started eating again, though she would constantly glance back at him every so often. As she ate, Naruto couldn't help noticing that despite the fact she held a rather muscular and thick frame like all Kurotsuki, the female seemed...just a bit thinner than normal. Nothing too bad, but just enough to warrant some worry. Judging from how she had taken to eating the deer while he was away and how she reacted when he came back, Naruto could only assume she hadn't eaten in awhile and if she had, it hadn't been enough for her.

Apart for the sounds of the female eating and the fire crackling slightly, Naruto found the silence to be rather peaceful. He was actually a bit surprised with himself, though. He had just found another lycan, quite possibly a Kurotsuki, and yet he was acting as if it were an every day occurence. Maybe it was not because he had thought of himself as the last one, but because he had secretly hoped he wasn't...

"Mm..." The female moaned faintly as she curled up beside Naruto and rested her head in his lap, making Naruto stare down at her in surprise, but he didn't do anything about it. Now that she had had her fill of venison, it didn't take long for the female to become drowsy, soon falling asleep where she was. Letting out a quiet sigh, Naruto slowly moved his hand so that it rested on the back of the female's neck and head, leaning his head back against the stone behind him.

_'I guess I'll just have to wait until morning...'_ Naruto thought to himself before closing his eyes and relaxing where he was, eventually drifting asleep...

**xXxXxXx**

"Mm..." Grunting quietly as he slowly started to wake up, Naruto yawned before opening his eyes and looking around, noticing it was just starting to get brighter out from sun rise. Glancing down and noticing that the female was still lying where she had been earlier that night, Naruto sighed quietly before smiling a little and gently petting the side of her neck. Letting out soft whine-like moan in her sleep, she curled up a little more and nuzzled his leg before going still once more. Looking over towards the buck he had hunted down yesterday, Naruto could only whine quietly in complaint when he saw that it was missing.

_'Something must have come and dragged it away while we were sleeping.'_ Naruto thought with dismay, having been looking forward to it since he hadn't been able to eat much last night. Knowing he would have to hunt down another one, Naruto rubbed the back of his neck and looked down at the female again. Attempting to slowly and gently move her head and his leg so that he could leave, the female only let out a soft whine and moved closer, making him bite back a curse. Yeah, Hana was going to kill him. Manipulating the chakra in his body, Naruto made a Shadow Clone with the thoughts of hunting down another deer running through his mind. Without saying a word, the clone took off on all fours. Naruto knew it would be a little while before it came back since the deer wouldn't be active until shortly after sunrise, but it was something he couldn't help.

"Mmmm...Hnn..." Hearing the faint groan and then a slight whine, Naruto glanced down to find the female waking up, yawning again before nudging closer and nuzzling his stomach slightly. Cocking an eye brow as the female glanced up at him for a moment before looking away, Naruto decided to take that moment to attempt communicating with her.

"Are you feeling better?" Naruto inquired softly and calmly, not wanting to startle or frighten her somehow. She didn't respond verbally, but she did nod a little hesitantly before slowly and almost reluctantly sitting up. Mentally sighing with relief, Naruto was glad she could at least understand him. That was one barrier that would have made communication damn near impossible. "That's good. Do you have a name?"

"Hnnn..." The female let out another soft whine before looking down as if ashamed or embarrassed about something before slowly shaking her head, practically refusing to look up at him for some reason. He could only figure that she was naturally submissive, most likely an Omega since a Beta was at least high enough in wolf-kin status to allow them to look at an Alpha's face. It would also explain why she wasn't talking, something that wasn't uncommon among Omegas, especially young ones. Her response made him sigh again, something he found himself doing far too often in his opinion.

"Well, that's a bit of a problem...I can't just keep calling you 'Female' or anything like that..." Naruto muttered quietly while scratching under his chin. By Kurotsuki law, a female Omega without a name was practically on par with a 'servant', though the term was actually 'Bitch'. However, if given a name by a male of higher ranking, they were immediately made, as called by Kurotsuki and other wolf-kin, their female. They were of a lower status than any female mate already 'owned' by said male as well as any other female mate the male may take, making them something akin to a 'concubine' or 'Delta', as they were sometimes refered as. The reason it was an actual law for Kurotsuki and other wolf-kin was because it was a natural and instant 'ritual' of sorts. He just knew that Hana was going to kill him for this, but he couldn't help it; he just couldn't leave the female nameless and alone out in the wild when it was obvious she couldn't really take care of herself all that well. "Would you...mind if I, uh...gave you one?"

"..." She didn't say anything or even make a noise, but her ears perked up slightly and her tail wagged a little as she nodded almost hopefully, still refusing to look up at him. Already picturing the many gruesome ways his pregnant mate could and most likely would kill him, Naruto ignored them and started thinking.

"How about...Yoruyoshi?" Naruto asked a little cautiously, knowing that she would readily agree to anything since naming a nameless 'Bitch' was considered one of the highest honors among Omegas. Almost instantly, the female nodded with agreement, blushing heavily beneath her obsidian fur as her tail wagged a bit more, but it went unseen due to the fact her fur was thick and dark in color. Ignoring the thoughts of Hana mauling him, Naruto gently cupped the newly named Yoruyoshi's chin before tilting her head up so that she was looking up at him, giving her a warm smile. "Good. Now, I have to ask...Can you talk?"

"...Y-Yes, sir..." Yoruyoshi mumbled shyly, still blushing as she locked eyes with her Alpha. She was so happy at that moment, having thought she would be alone forever. She also believed she would have ended up dead within the week if she hadn't come across her Alpha last night. Bowing her head again at the thought, she felt guilty for what she did last night. "I-I'm sorry for eating y-your dinner last night, sir...I-I was just so hung-"

"It's alright, Yoru." Naruto interrupted, giving her another smile. Blushing at the apparent nickname, Yoruyoshi glanced up at him and couldn't help smiling a little as well. "It's pointless now, anyways. The buck was probably taken by some other wolves or something last night while we were sleeping."

"Hnn...I'm sorry, sir..." She apologized again with another soft whine, making Naruto sigh yet again.

"First, stop apologizing so much. You didn't do anything wrong. Second, you don't need to keep calling me 'sir' all the time. Just call me 'Naruto'." Naruto remarked as he stood up and stretched, only to yawn again. Shaking his head a little, Naruto glanced down at Yoruyoshi as she, too, stood up.

"H-Hai, Naruto-sama..." She replied meekly, making Naruto suppress a groan. He should have expected that. By rank and law, he was her superior, so it was only natural for her to be so respectful and submissive. A thought popping in his head, Naruto turned towards her.

"If you don't mind me asking, how did you end up all the way out here, anyways?" He inquired curiously, making Yoruyoshi whine faintly again while looking down, her arms wrapped around her middle nervously, her facial expression showing sadness and pain.

"...M-My pack leader was killed by a bear. The n-new pack leader didn't like me or the other two Bitches and...exiled us. We've been on our own for almost four months." She responded quietly, flinching back when Naruto suddenly started growling. Forcing himself to stay calm, Naruto took a deep breath and suppressed his anger, making a mental note to track down Yoruyoshi's former pack.

"Do you...know where the other two are?" Naruto asked gently while slowly placing his hand on her arm to soothe her fears. When she nodded, Naruto figured he might as well start making his peace with the gods. Hana definitely wasn't going to be happy with him. "Can you take me to them?"

"...H-Hai, Na-Naruto-sama..." Yoruyoshi answered quietly again before walking off back towards the north where she had come from. As he followed her, Naruto created another clone.

"Go inform Jiraiya to continue on without me. If he asks why, just tell him that I have to deal with Kurotsuki clan business. As for my other clone, I want him to hunt down at least four deer, if possible. We'll be having guests for breakfast. Once you're done speaking with Jiraiya, just dispell." Naruto ordered the doppleganger before it quickly left. Since the memories of a Kage Bunshin were automatically 'sent' to the original and any other currently existing clone, it made things much easier on him. Without anything else to stall them, Naruto looked back towards Yoruyoshi before nodding, prompting them both to start running through the forest in the direction Yorushi's other two Omega companions were in...

**xXxXxXx**

"At least they're healthy..." Naruto muttered to himself as he watched the two unconscious Bitches feed on a pair of doe, both also looking starved, but not quite as bad as Yoruyoshi. Still, it was enough for him to worry. He and another clone had already carried both females back to the cave and the first clone had already dropped off two deer it had hunted down, which were now being eaten by the two nameless females, but it went back out to try to get a few more, as per Naruto's orders. Unsealing a canteen from a scroll, Naruto passed them to Yoruyoshi. "Yoru, could you fill this with water? I'm sure they're just as thirsty as they're hungry."

"Hai!" Yoruyoshi acknowledged with a bit more enthusiasm then her usual timid responses before quickly making her way down to the stream. As she did, Naruto examined both females.

The first one was about the same height and size as Yoruyoshi, only she had medium grey fur with white-grey fur covering the front of her torso from her chin all the way down the middle of her muscular thighs on the inside and unusually bright icy blue-white eyes. Similarly to Yoruyoshi, she was clad in a pair of black short-shorts that were a bit too small for her along with a black tank top that was surprisingly in good condition apart from a couple slight tears, but it conformed to her large breasts like a second skin. Forcing out the thoughts that popped into his head, Naruto turned his eyes to the other female, that looked almost identical to the other one, only she was about 6'4" and had dark reddish-brown fur with white fur covering her front much like the other Bitch, but her eyes were a very rare shade of pink-ish red. She was dressed in a white T-shirt that was greatly stretched out and barely managing to contain her breasts, which were larger than either Yoruyoshi's or the other Bitch's, and she was also wearing a pair of dark grey shorts that ended half-way down her thighs, the cuffs torn and ripped along with being a bit too small on her as well.

_'That fucker must be seriously mistreating the females. Even Omegas have the right to wear clothes that at least fit them and not these...rags.'_ Naruto mentally snarled, his anger towards their _pack leader_ growing with every passing minute. He would be sure to end the little bastard as soon as he got there. However, he would have to follow wolf-kin law. Thus, a challenge must be issued and accepted. If the male declines, though, he'll lose respect and authority amongst his pack, meaning he would suffer either disgrace and dishonor or death by Naruto's claws and fangs.

"I'm sorry to interrupt your meals, but I'll just get straight to the point. I wish to name you both, as I have already done with your friend, Yoruyoshi." Naruto spoke up as he approached the two Bitches, prompting them to pause in their feast and pay attention to him. They both reacted almost exactly as Yoruyoshi had earlier that morning, but he ignored it for the moment. Looking at the grey one first, he continued. "From now on, your name is Sayuri. And you, little one, shall be known as Akame. Does that sound good to you?"

"...Th-Thank you, Arufa!" 'Akame' exclaimed joyfully as she suddenly lunged forward and hugged her new Alpha with her face buried in his chest, surprising Naruto by her reaction. Figuring it was because she was just more excitable than the others, Naruto only smiled and wrapped an arm around her before motioning for Sayuri to join in, noticing the look on her face. Almost instantly, the grey female shot into his arms and nuzzled his neck, both females smiling happily as tears of joy filled their eyes.

"Here you go, Naruto-sama." Yoruyoshi spoke up softly as she walked up to them after a few minutes, the canteen in her hands filled with the cool waters of the stream. Muttering a soft 'thank you', Naruto took the canteen before gently pulling himself free of Sayuri and Akame, holding the canteen out to them.

"I figured you were both feeling a bit thirsty. Here." Naruto told them with another kind smile while handing Akame the canteen. Smiling happily, they both thanked him before taking a drink, only to return to eating their deer. Turning around and sitting down where he had slept last night, Naruto could only sigh. _'Yeah...I'm going to be one dead wolf when Hana's gets wind of what I did...'_

**xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx**

Nokanzou- Day Lily

Getsumenshou- Lunar Phase

Yoruyoshi- Night Beauty

Sayuri- Orchid

Akame- Red Eyes

Arufa- Alpha


	10. Chapter 10

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.

**xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx**

Beasts of War

**xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx**

Chapter Ten

"Really, now? That's quite interesting. I never knew Kurotsuki had such a unique and unusual heirarchy..." Jiraiya muttered as he and Naruto sat at the entrance to the cave Naruto and his Deltas had been residing in for the past three days. Naruto snorted at the man's response before suddenly snatching the white haired man's note pad out of his hands and snarling at him, making the pervert laugh nervously with a sheepish grin on his face.

"Don't even think about it, you old fool. I will not tolerate such _trash_ being written about my people." Naruto snarled as he leaned in close to the man, leaving only a couple inches of space between their faces. Getting the message loud and clear, Jiraiya nodded frantically, sweating bullets since he knew Naruto wouldn't hesitate to rip him apart for writting a smut novel based off of him and his fellow lycans. "As for the reason why you didn't know, the Kurotsuki, like all other Shishisensou, were very secretive when it came to the inner workings or our clans. Simply put, we didn't like people knowing anything about us. You're lucky that I'm even telling you any of this."

"Good enough answer." Jiraiya mumbled quietly as he rubbed the back of his neck while Naruto pulled back and relaxed, both going back to watching as Akame kept trying to get Sayuri to play with her while Yoruyoshi was off to the side, lounging under the shade of a tree as she took a nap. "So, what are you going to do with the, uh...Deltas, right?"

"Yes and I plan on bringing them to Konoha with me. There, I will house them in the Kurotsuki compound. While not of direct blood, they are still descended of Kurotsuki." Naruto explained, scratching under his chin. He couldn't help smiling faintly at how energetic and peppy Akame was. Although the youngest, she was only a year younger than himself. He was surprised that her ill-treatment with their former pack hadn't openly affected her as it had Yoruyoshi or Sayuri, who were both quiet and soft-spoken. Yoruyoshi had it the worst, though. She would stutter most of the time and even after being 'promoted' to Delta by being given a name, she would still sometimes regress into more Omega-like behaviour. Then again, he shouldn't be surprised. "I'm uncertain how Hana will react to the fact I now have three Deltas that are on par with concubines...It's almost definite that she'll be thoroughly upset, but that's a given."

"You mentioned that they had been exiled from their 'pack'. Did you ever look into that? There could be others like yourself that might want to come with you." Jiraiya noted, cocking an eye brow curiously when Naruto sighed slightly and shook his head negatively.

"I was going to, but then I thought about it and decided not to. Right now, I have too much to deal with. I have pups on the way and have to prepare for them. I have three new Deltas that I have to tend to and make sure they are well. I have the Inuzuka heir to train." Naruto shook his head again, closing his eyes for a moment as he stood up from his spot. "No, I can not afford to take on any others until I have established a proper foundation for my clan's resurrection. For now, enough has been done."

In truth, Naruto _had_ looked into it. The night after finding Sayuri and Akame, Naruto had Yoruyoshi lead him to the pack's location before coming back to the cave with her. The night after that, Naruto had gone back out there and done some information gathering. However, he was surprised to discover that another of the males, a Beta of all things, had risen up and challenged the Alpha. And _won_. He had watched as the Beta-turned-Alpha killed the tyrant of a lycan before immediately starting to work on fixing the things that had been ruined by the previous Alpha. He had even instructed that a couple of the pack members head out at dawn to look for the three Omegas that had been exiled in the past.

Naruto had then snuck into the pack's valley-like place of residence once everyone started going to sleep and slipped into the cave the Alpha was living in. It had been a bit of a hassle to get the Alpha to relax without alerting any of the others, but he had managed it. Naruto had let him know that the three 'Omegas' were now under his care and were now Deltas. He had even offered the male the chance to bring his pack to Konoha where they would be able to live in the Kurotsuki compound with him, but he had refused, stating he prefered the forest and knew that his pack did as well. Before he left, however, Naruto had made sure to let the new pack leader know his home would remain available to them in the future...

"...You know, you're wiser than you let on, right?" Jiraiya spoke up before Naruto could walk away, making him glance at him quizzically. Jiraiya simply smiled and shook his head. "Never mind. Go on."

"Hmph..." Snorting quietly again, Naruto rolled his eyes and walked over towards his Deltas. Just as Jiraiya was about to pull out a notepad he hadn't touched since he wrote 'Tales of a Gutsy Ninja', he was suddenly assualted by a black, orange, and blonde blur.

"Hey, hey, hey! You still need to help me with the Rasengan! I've only got a couple more days until the deadline for mine and Obaa-chan's bet!" Naomi ranted over-enthusiastically while shaking Jiraiya's shoulder. Laughing in response, Jiraiya put his hand against her face and shoved her back lightly, making the young blonde stumble back and fall on her butt, causing her to glare heatedly at him with a fierce blush of embarrassment and humilation.

"You're on your own there, kid. I've already taught you the steps. _You_ are the one that's got to put them together." Jiraiya retorted, making Naomi pout childishly, crossing her arms over her chest with a huff as she glared off to the side, only to suddenly become curious and a little confused when she spotted Naruto, who was suddenly tackled to the ground by a giggling Akame.

"Hey, Ero-sennin...Who're they?" The young Uzumaki questioned, making Jiraiya glance over at Naruto and his Deltas. He was quiet for a moment, watching as Naruto laughed a little as Akame started pestering him, wanting him to play with her since Sayuri wouldn't and Yoruyoshi, or 'Yoshi-chan' as the auburn furred female called her, was still sleeping. Smiling, Jiraiya shook his head while standing up.

"Naruto made some new friends. Now, get going. You've only got a couple days until you make us lose our only candidate for Hokage." Jiraiya answered, knowing it would spurn the blonde. Cheeks puffing out indignantly, Naomi glared at him before storming off to keeping working on the Rasengan. The Toad Sage could only smile at the nostalgia, remembering how Minato's wife, Kushina, acted almost the same way in the past. He also saw a bit of Minato in her, excluding the blonde hair and blue eyes. She was stubborn and would often times train herself to the point of absolute exhaustion. Shaking his head with another small smile, Jiraiya pulled out his old notepad, staring down at the weathered and old cover on the small item. Flipping it open to a clean page, he started writing down ideas and notes for his next actual book...

_'Shishisensou...Beasts of War...'_ Jiraiya mused thoughtfully before smirking a little. _'Yeah. That sounds like the perfect title for it...'_

**xXxXxXx**

"It's begun..." Naruto muttered under his breath as he looked off towards the remains of Tanzaku Castle was, his sharp ears catching the faint booming sound as something was destroyed. Without pause, Naruto turned and took off, leaving his Deltas in the care of a Shadow Clone. Rolling into a Tenga, Naruto could hear several more of the booming strikes. Instinctively, he knew it was Tsunade's strength, something even he didn't plan on contesting. Tetsu no Kegawa fully active and Lightning chakra surging across his metallic body, Naruto's speed doubled along with the precision of his movements, something he had not yet mastered enough to use in combat.

Rolling into the battlefield, Naruto kicked off the ground and arched through the air as he unfurled, switching to Brutal Fang Mode as he did. Shrouded in smoke for only a split second, he landed heavily and left deep impressions of his armored paw-like feet in the packed soil as he stood between Tsunade and Kabuto, the silver haired teen's chakra covered palm striking the abdomen of the armored titan that now stood before him, having been aiming for Tsunade's chest. Unaffected, Naruto swung his left arm around, backhanding the spy across the face and sending him flying into a nearby boulder.

**"Stand, Tsunade. I may be strong, but I can not fight Orochimaru and his servant at the same time."** Naruto growled out, his voice echoing with a faint metallic thrum due to his full-head helmet, the jaws shaped like a rabid snarl with a dense mesh molded in the image of fangs to allow fresh air while filtering out all foreign substances such as dust and all poisons. Shocked by the arrival and mere presence of the anthromorphic wolf of metal, Tsunade could only nod before running through a couple handseals in order to repair the damage done to her arms and abdomen by Kabuto's Chakra Scalpels.

"Kehehehe...I should have expected you would be here, Naruto-kun..." Kabuto spoke up as he stood back up, still hurting from the mighty blow he had suffered. Had it not been for his ability to heal himself so well, he would have undoubtedly been rendered paralyzed by the strike for quite some time.

**"Silence, whelp."** Naruto growled before slowly and purposefully marching towards Kabuto, his heavy footfalls giving off deep and muted thuds of noise. Scoffing, Kabuto figured that Naruto's current state relied more on power than speed, meaning he still held the advantage. As he moved to infiltrate Naruto's guard, Kabuto quickly realized his folly when he heard Orochimaru call out.

"Don't, you fool! You'll only be crushed!" Orochimaru spat harshly, but it was too late; Kabuto was already within range. Before the glasses wearing silver haired traitor could react, Naruto had wrapped his arms around Kabuto, trapping him in bear-hug as he started squeezing harder and harder. Gritting his teeth, Kabuto tried to endure it, only to cry out breifly in pain as three of his ribs suddenly cracked and one of them broke. Eyes going wide with agony, Kabuto could only attempt to escape, but he couldn't. Letting out another short scream as another rib broke, Kabuto tried to draw a kunai from the pouch on his thigh, only for a sudden pulse of Lightning chakra to coat Naruto, electrocuting the spy. A moment later, he was released, causing him to drop to his knees in a painful daze.

Reaching down, Naruto grabbed both of Kabuto's shoulders before lifting him up into the air and slamming him down on the ground, only to sling him into another nearby boulder. Slowly straightening back up, Naruto turned and started glaring at Orochimaru, his fury slowly growing stronger as he remembered it had been the white skinned bastard that had killed his grandfather. Just as he took a third step towards the pale-skinned man, Naruto was suddenly kicked in the side of his head, knocking him off balance a little. Swinging his arm in retaliation, he knocked Kabuto back once more before regaining his footing and growling darkly at him.

**"Tsunade...Take care of the snake. I've got a rat to catch."** Naruto snarled quietly as he focused back on Kabuto, deciding that avenging the Sandaime's death would have to wait for another day. Just as his Rockets started firing up, Naruto's eyes widened with surprise when Kabuto reappeared in front of him, his hands blazing with the blue flame of chakra. Before he could react or counter, Kabuto's left palm slammed against the right side of Naruto's neck while his right hand slammed into the middle of Naruto's chest. Slamming his right palm into Kabuto's face as he stumbled forward and dropped to his knees, Naruto used it to his advantage and smashed the smaller male's head into the ground, the Rockets sputtering and dying out. Stumbling back as he numbly pawed at his neck and chest, Naruto switched to Feral Fang, his eyes wide with something he hadn't felt before...

Fear.

Blood soaked his entire right shoulder and the right side of his chest, his neck cut open on the right side from Kabuto's Chakra Scalpel. Not only that, but he found it incredibly hard to breathe, the other one undoubtedly having struck his respiratory system. Tripping over a rock when he tried to stand back up, Naruto slammed into the ground, his breathing shallow and rapid as blood continued to bubble out of his throat.

_'Hana...Yoru...Sayuri...Akame...'_ Naruto thought sluggishly and worriedly, his body feeling weak as his vision started going dark. He heard something, though. It sounded almost like Naomi, but he couldn't tell. Pushing off the ground in an attempt to get back up, Naruto succeeded only in rolling onto his back, his blurry and darkening eyes staring up at the sky. Reaching up with a numb hand, Naruto gripped the necklace around his neck, his clawed fingers curling around the fang hanging from the chain. "I-I'm sor...sorry...Hana...I won't...be coming...back..."

"Don't st...lking...at, Narut..." Someone started saying, but Naruto's senses were fading too much for him to see who it was or hear everything they were saying. All he saw was a soft green light before darkness finally claimed him...

**xXxXxXx**

_Poof!_

"Huh? What's going on? Why'd Arufa suddenly disappear?" Akame questioned out of confusion, sniffing around the spot Naruto's clone had been standing just a few moments ago. Yoruyoshi and Sayuri, knowing a bit more about ninja techniques than their smaller companion, knew that something was wrong. Naruto wouldn't have dispelled his clone and left them by themselves.

"Something's wrong." Yoruyoshi whispered to Sayuri, who nodded. "Naruto-sama told us to stay here, but...I think he's in trouble. We should look for him."

"I agree. Akame! Come on!" Sayuri called out before she and Yoruyoshi took off on all fours, quickly picking up on Naruto's scent trail as Akame trailed behind them. Moving as fast as they could, they managed to reach Naruto's location, but what they saw was something they had fearfully wanted to never see. Lying on the ground and unmoving was Naruto, his blood-soaked fur contrasting heavily with his normally light grey and white colored fur as Shizune tried to heal him while calling out to Tsunade, who was frozen in place due to the blood spattered all over her.

"Arufa..." Akame whispered before hearing a booming crash off to the side and saw two massive snakes, only for them to be trapped in place as a swamp of some kind suddenly formed beneath them. As the white haired man that had been with Naruto the other day started fighting against a black haired man with snow white skin, Akame felt her eyes lock onto the silver haired man with glasses as he disabled the blonde haired girl and charged the black haired woman trying to heal Naruto. Snarling ferally as her fur bristled with rage, Akame's red-pink eyes suddenly bled into a dark crimson that filled the whites of her eyes as well before suddenly taking off, slamming into the silver haired male's side and slamming him into the ground before he could react. Without warning or pause, Akame's claws slashed through his flesh, only for a sandaled foot to plant itself against her stomach and kick her back.

"What the hell...? There's...more?" Kabuto wrasped out as his body started healing, only for his eyes to widen just as a clawed paw-like hand, this one covered in grey fur unlike the auburn of the first female lycan, to appear within his vision from the left. Unable to react fast enough, Kabuto was grabbed by the left side of his head from behind and slammed into the ground, only to be lifted up and thrown to the side. While in mid-air, another clawed paw-like hand, this one black, made contact with his stomach before the claws stabbed into his abdomen for better grip. Kabuto, wide eyed and in pain, could do nothing as he was thrown, the claws ripping deep and bloody gashes in his stomach while a vertabrae in his spine was fractured upon impacting a large boulder, cracking the stone slightly.

"You hurt Arufa..." Akame snarled as she slowly picked herself back off the ground, Sayuri's and Yoruyoshi's eyes matching her own. They didn't know it exactly and neither did anyone else, but they were experiencing something referred to as a 'Blood Rage' by the Kurotsuki. It caused even the weakest of wolf-kin to become as physically strong as any other, if not more so, their adrenaline surging through their veins and reaching levels as high as ten times what was normal. They also became single-minded and instinctual, making them a very deadly opponent for almost anyone that wasn't prepared to fight them. Unfortunately, once the Blood Rage passed, the wolf-kin was left in an even weaker state than before. "Now...You die..."

"ARRROOOO!" Sayuri howled before Yoruyoshi and Akame charged forward from either side of Kabuto. Yoruyoshi ducked down while swinging a clawed hand at Kabuto while Akame leapt over her friend as she swung at the man as well. Crying out in agony, Kabuto's head was turned to the right as ragged trenches were torn out of his face and neck while the black female's claws ripped through his stomach for a second time. Just as they passed by, Sayuri lunged at him from straight ahead, twisting her body as she wrapped her fanged jaws around his throat. Keeping her hold, Sayuri's feet touched down on the ground with them both bent back at the waist, Kabuto's face contorted with pain and fear as Yoruyoshi and Akame moved to Sayuri and grabbed her hands, helping pull her forward while she continued to hold onto the man's neck. Suddenly lifting him off the ground, Sayuri swung him up and over her before slamming him down on the ground while releasing his neck, only to stomp down on the back of his neck with her foot, grinning rabidly at the faint sound of cracking bone.

"Naruto-sama..." Yoruyoshi muttered quietly before all three Deltas turned towards Naruto, barely making it over to him before they calmed down enough to revert back to normal, each one falling to their knees and barely managing to stay conscious. Their eyes started to water as Shizune worked furiously to heal the wound in his neck, which was surprisingly deep. "N-Naruto-sama..."

"Damn it, Tsunade! Snap out of it! I need your help!" Shizune called out at her teacher once again. Before she could try to call out to her sensei again, Kabuto, still healing from his wounds, struck the back of Shizune's neck, knocking her out as he started making his way towards Tsunade, his eyes blood shot and almost crazed as he glared at the immobilized Slug Princess. Letting out a quiet whine, Sayuri knew neither she nor her companions could move in time to help and not only that, but it would undoubtedly end in one of their deaths.

"Hnnn..." Whining softly herself, Akame couldn't keep her eyes open any longer and blacked out, falling to the ground. She was soon followed by Yoruyoshi before Sayuri passed out as well a few moments later, staying conscious just long enough to catch sight of the blonde haired girl from before as she got between the silver haired man and the older blonde woman. Just as Kabuto attacked, Sayuri's vision went black and she slipped into the realm of unconsciousness...

**xXxXxXx**

"...Ngh..." Eyes slowly opening, Naruto felt only a fragment of his strength return to him as his Iron Fur technique continued working hard to heal him as best as possible, allowing him to regain consciousness. Glancing around, he noticed that Naomi was being healed by Tsunade while Kabuto was rendered unable to move a decent distance away from them. His Deltas were lying nearby, only unconscious, while Shizune was in a similar state just to his other side. Spotting something further away where two trapped snake summons were, Naruto's eyes widened before he forced himself to move.

_'Naomi!'_ Tsunade thought to herself in realization as she moved between Orochimaru and the blonde jinchuuriki, only for another figure to appear, their shadow blanketing her and Naomi. The next moment, Kusanagi burst from his back, just barely missing his spine. Snarling as blood oozed from his mouth, Naruto wrapped his hands around Orochimaru's neck, glaring down into the eyes of Konoha's most hated enemy, but he didn't care about any of that, his eyes practically glowing a menacing vermillion as he dug his claws into Orochimaru's flesh, the man's eyes widening as he found himself unable to escape.

"No one...hurts...a member of...my pack...and LIVES!" Naruto roared out in the end as he squeezed as hard as he could, only for Orochimaru to slam his still-extended tongue into Naruto side, forcing him to let go while getting knocked aside, Kusanagi's blade sliding out of his chest as he fell. Eyes fading back to their normal amber, Naruto found himself slipping back into Death's hands for a second time in the past hour. A small humorless smirk of irony formed on his face, finding himself on the verge of dying yet again. It had been some time since he had been so heavily wounded...Unfortunately, it seemed like it would be for the last time...

Unable to hear anything and vision too dark once again to see anything, Naruto could only feel himself go from lying on the ground to lying on something rather soft and...mobile. However, before he could contemplate what it was, he blacked out completely once again...

**xXxXxXx**

"They truly are fighters, aren't they?" Jiraiya muttered to himself as he sat on the other side of the room. It had been a full thirty-six hours since their battle with Orochimaru. Naruto's 'Deltas', as he called them, had regained consciousness that morning and were currently sitting off to one side of Naruto as Tsunade continued working on healing his injuries as much as possible. He was already stable, but Tsunade wanted to repay Naruto for his efforts to protect her and the others. Naomi, who was busy devouring a bowl of ramen ordered from a nearby ramen stand, paused in her feast for a moment and glanced up at her sensei when he spoke up, only to shrug and go back to her meal. Even the normally energetic and obnoxious Naomi was subdued, having stayed quiet most of the day as she recovered.

_'Three times now. Three times he almost died. Kabuto almost killed him in the beginning, Orochimaru almost finished him off the second time with his Kusanagi, and he almost died a third time after Shizune passed out from chakra exhaustion before she could stabilize him. Thankfully, Katsuya had been present or else we'd be short one member...'_ Jiraiya thought to himself, his eyes narrowed with respect and worry for the lycan. He had come to respect the Kurotsuki almost as much as he did his late student, Namikaze Minato. While a little different, they both shared the same general mindset when it came to their comrades, friends, and family. They wouldn't quit until they either died or defeated the threat against their precious people. Closing his eyes and crossing his arms over his chest, he leaned back against the wall behind him, deciding to simply wait and hope he pulled through.

_'Naruto-sama...'_ Yoruyoshi mentally whispered with worry as she sat between Sayuri and Akame, holding either female's hand as they all waited for their Alpha to open his eyes again. Akame let out a quiet whimper as tears continued to fall from her eyes, being the more emotional member of their group. Sayuri was no better, though, and Yoruyoshi found herself nearing that point as well. They just wanted to see their Alpha's yellow eyes and hear his voice again. They just wanted to make sure that he would survive.

**xXxXxXx**

_"Howl at the moon, Howl at the sky. Be their guardian, don't let them die." Setsugetuka sang softly, cradling her newborn baby in her arms as tears of joy fell from her eyes. She knew she didn't have long, her strength fading with every minute that passed. However, that wasn't going to stop her from singing to her only pup, Naruto. "Howl at the moon, Howl at the sky. Hear them laugh, hear them cry. Howl at the moon, Howl at the sky. Here you stand, tell them why. Howl at the moon, Howl at the sky. We are strong, that's no lie."_

"..." Naruto slowly opened his eyes as it neared midnight, still hearing his mother's words echo in his mind. The poem was called Wolf-Song, written by one of the Kurotsuki clan's first Alpha pack leaders, also known as clan leaders. It was a double-sided message, speaking of both pain and joy at the same time. It was one of the Kurotsuki clan's most cherished pieces of their history, being something akin to the source of their 'Will of Fire', as it were.

"Ngh!" Suddenly nashing his fanged teeth and squeezing his eyes shut, Naruto bit back a snarl as white-hot pain flared to life in his chest, but it passed after a few moments. Gasping for air with quick and shallow breaths, Naruto opened his eyes again, gently covering the bandages wrapped around his chest, more having been wrapped around his neck. Glancing over to his right, he smiled softly at the sight of Sayuri, Yoruyoshi, and Akame all curled up and huddled up against one another as they slept beside him.

_'They're okay...'_ Naruto mentally told himself reassuringly, slowly and weakly reaching over and gently wrapping his hand around Yoruyoshi's. Stirred from her sleep, she gave a jaw-cracking yawn before cracking her eyes open and seeing Naruto staring at her, smiling. Not wanting to disturb the others, Yoruyoshi simply smiled back and gently squeezed his hand, silently thanking whatever god or goddess that was watching over them that their Alpha was okay. Giving his hand another squeeze, Yoruyoshi smiled slightly before resting her head back on top of Akame's, closing her eyes for more sleep.

As he laid there, still holding Yoruyoshi's hand, Naruto could only stare at the ceiling. Slowly reaching up with his left hand, he wrapped his fingers around the fang hanging from his necklace; it had been his father's. It was more than just a piece of jewelry or an accessory. It was a symbol of emotional strength for Kurotsuki, having been an heirloom passed from one pack leader to another through the Kurotsuki clan. For Naruto, however, it was his bond to his fallen people.

_'I wonder how Hana's doing right now?'_ Naruto suddenly mused, trying to occupy his mind until he eventually fell back asleep...

**xXxXxXx**

"Hana, calm down! Everything's fine." Anko urged as she held her younger friend in a comforting embrace, the woman sobbing into her shoulder as she clung to the purple haired woman as if she were the only thing keeping her alive.

"N-No, i-it's not! I f-f-felt it! Naruto-kun's hurt!" Hana cried out, her words muffled slightly by Anko's shoulder. It had happened unexpectedly. Out of nowhere, Hana is at her door, crying hystically and on the verge of having a panic attack. If it hadn't been for the fact Anko had known her since they were kids, she wouldn't have been able to decypher the Inuzuka/Kurotsuki woman's sputtering and mumbling through her tears. However, after being there for Hana after three bad relationships, Anko was able to figure out that something had supposedly happened to Naruto. That had been yesterday. Even now, Hana was still freaking out, but the tokubetsu jounin couldn't blame her.

She'd probably be acting the same way if she were in Hana's place...

"..." Getting a little worried when Hana suddenly went quiet, Anko glanced down at her friend, only to find that she had finally passed out. However, she was still clinging to her with an impossibly strong grip. Pouting a little after a failed attempt to free herself resulted in only an even tight hold, Anko begrudgingly resigned to her fate. Thinking back on Hana's and Naruto's relationship, Anko had to admit that she was honestly jealous of the woman in her arms. Being the former student of Orochimaru, Anko had to deal with assholes and jackasses all day, every day. Many of them didn't trust her as far as they could throw her and that wasn't very far, considering she'd beat the unholy hell out of them before they could attempt to do so. Not only that, but she couldn't find a single person that wanted to have a serious relationship with her...

_'You're a lucky girl, Hana. You've got the man of your dreams. Unfortunately, he's also the man of my dreams, but...he'll never be mine.'_ Anko mentally stated, tensing her jaw as she fought back that beginnings of tears that stung at the corners of her eyes. Taking a deep, yet shaky breath as she calmed down, Anko silently scolded herself for nearly losing her composure, for letting her mask slip. It didn't matter that Hana was asleep and they were alone in her bedroom. She still almost exposed her true self to the world and she absolutely refused to let that happen, lest someone find out and try to exploit her weakness. _'...Why the hell did I have to fall in love with my best friend's fiance?'_

**xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx**


	11. Chapter 11

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.

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Beasts of War

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Chapter Eleven

It had taken Naruto a week, with his Tetsu no Kegawa fully active the entire time, to recover enough to travel. Even then, he needed Jiraiya to help support his weight most of the way. Not only that, but they had been unable to travel at their usual speed because of his condition, forcing them to go at a civilian's pace. The journey from Tanzaku to Konoha had taken another week. When they neared the village, Naruto had stubbornly refused to let anyone see his weakness and made the rest of the journey under his own power.

"One more week..." Naruto muttered under his breath as he sighed quietly, rubbing the back of his neck as he reached the Kurotsuki compound as it neared sun-set, his three Deltas loyaly following behind him and his Iron Fur technique inactive. He couldn't believe he had been away from Hana for almost two full months. Pressing his hand against one of the gates and pushing it open, Naruto led the three females inside before leading them to his home. Quietly entering, Naruto motioned for them to stay. "I don't know how she'll react, so uh...let me tell her first..."

"Let you tell me _what_ first?" Hana suddenly spoke up from behind Naruto, who froze in place. Slowly turning around and dreading the worst because of his mate's tone, Naruto was caught off guard when Hana just wrapped her arms around him and started crying. "I-I was s-so wo-worried about you!"

"...I'm sorry, Hana. I didn't mean to take so long coming back. There were some unforeseen events." Naruto answered, only for Hana to suddenly shake her head and look up from his chest, which was still bandaged. Slowly reaching up, she tenderly placed her hand over the healing wound hidden under the bandages.

"I...I don't know how to explain it, but...I somehow knew that you had been hurt..." Hana answered as her tears grew more intense, burying her face against his chest again as Naruto gently cradled the back of her head. "...a-and it s-scared me...I-I th-thought I was g-going to l-lose you..."

"Shh...I'm not dying any time soon." Naruto calmly reassured, consoling his lover and slowly managing to get her to calm down. Slowly and reluctantly pulling away, Hana dried her eyes before glancing over to the three females, only to glare up at Naruto. Sighing as he instantly knew what she was accusing him of, Naruto figured he had all of thirty seconds to save his ass before Hana ended up kicking him outside for the night or something. "Before you even start, they're 'rescues', okay? They were half-starved and out on their own. I couldn't just leave them out there to die. Bitches or not-"

"Hey!" Hana suddenly spat with anger, cutting him off. Pausing with confusion, Naruto blinked for a moment.

"What? With the Kurotsuki, a 'Bitch' is a nameless female Omega. All three were nameless female Omegas. There's nothing wrong with calling them that. Believe me, I asked." Naruto answered, still a bit confused by Hana's reaction. Before he continued, Naruto cast a quick and silent prayer to the gods above that he survive the impending wrath of his mate. "As I was saying, they are all Deltas, now...As to how that happened...Well, I, uh...I named them."

"Uh-huh. If that's all, then why are you so nervous?" Hana inquired a bit sharply while narrowing her eyes out of suspicioun. Before Naruto could answer, Yoruyoshi stepped forward, head bowed respectfully and submissively.

"Like the Kurotsuki, all wolf-kin follow the same general laws. Among them, there are a couple referring to Bitches. One of which is on a nameless Omega being given a name and being promoted to Delta." Yoruyoshi started, blushing faintly out of nervousness when Hana turned her attention on her. "When a Bitch is named by an Alpha, they are immediately promoted to Delta and...become the equivalent to a 'concubine' to the Alpha that named them."

"You mean to tell me...that you named _all three of them_?" Hana slowly and quietly growled as she glared back up at Naruto, who was a bit more nervous than he was just a minute ago...

**xXxXxXx**

"H-Hana! Be reasonable!" Naruto tried to change her decision, only to be shoved out of the room and a pillow thrown in his face before he could say anything else. The bedroom door slammed shut a moment later. Sighing heavily as he picked up the pillow, Naruto slowly made his way back to the living room and sat down on one of the couches. Setting the pillow off to the side, Naruto laid down with another sigh. He couldn't believe she had actually 'banished' him to the couch until further notice. Honestly, that was worse than being kicked outside like she had done that one time and all because he accidentally made a 'fat joke' without meaning to while they were talking about her being pregnant.

Dismissing such thoughts, Naruto started getting a bit comfortable, wincing slightly in pain as his chest ached, but nothing too bad; he'd probably be able to take the bandages off in the next day or two. Not long after he started drifting asleep, three heads poked themselves out of the rooms they had been given. They had heard everything said between Naruto and Hana. Whining softly, Akame was the first to leave her room before heading downstairs as quietly as possible. Sayuri and Yoruyoshi shared a glance before they sighed and followed after the smaller Delta, just to make sure she wouldn't get into any trouble...

Plus, they, too, wanted to check on their Alpha and make sure he was okay...

Back in her room, however, Hana was starting to regret her decision. She didn't even know why she had gotten so mad with him; he was just trying to help them. She probably would have done the same thing if she were in his position. Lying in bed, alone, Hana clutched one of the large pillows to her chest, clad in only her grey tank top and black panties like she usually was when in bed. Biting her bottom lip, Hana tried to hold out for as long as possible, but it was getting really hard. It was a little after midnight now, roughly two or three hours after banishing Naruto to the couch, and she just couldn't sleep. Turning on the lamp on the nightstand as she got up, Hana walked over to the full-body mirror set off to the side before pulling her shirt up enough to reveal her stomach, turning to her right for a full side-profile of her body.

_'I'm already starting to show...'_ Hana thought to herself as she was filled with a maternal warmth, smiling slightly as she gently caressed her distended belly. She had first started showing almost a week ago, but Hana guessed that Naruto had been right about the fact she would be pregnant with a great many pups, which would also explain why her belly was already sticking out an inch or two when she hadn't even reached a full three months into her pregnancy. Gently rubbing the slight bulge, Hana sighed heavily with defeat and pulled her shirt back down. Grabbing one of the blankets in the room, Hana turned the lamp off and headed downstairs. As she entered the living room, however, Hana could only stare on in surprise before smiling slightly again. Sayuri and Yoruyoshi had curled around their smaller companion, Akame, as they all slept on the floor beside the couch that Naruto was sleeping on.

_'I should apologize to them in the morning. I bet they think I hate them or something.'_ Hana thought with a slight frown before pushing those thoughts off to the side for now. Looking at the blanket in her hands, Hana looked back to the Deltas before using it to cover the three sleeping female lycans. A quick return to the bedroom and Hana had acquired another blanket, using it to cover Naruto and herself as she laid down beside him on the couch. Smiling lovingly when Naruto instinctively wrapped an arm around her and pulled her close, Hana nuzzled his shoulder and curled up slightly while cuddling closer to him. Leaning up slightly, Hana gently kissed Naruto on the cheek. Laying her head back down on Naruto's shoulder with a soft sigh of contentment, Hana closed her eyes and smiled warmly, finally able to sleep now that she was back in her lover's arms...

**xXxXxXx**

"Mm...Huh?" Naruto mumbled as he woke up, taking notice of an unexpected weight on his chest. Glancing down, he saw that it was Hana. Hearing a noise off to the side, Naruto couldn't stop himself from smiling when he saw Akame and Sayuri sleeping peacefully under the blanket Hana had undoubtedly brought out for them last night, the smaller of the two Deltas snoring quietly while the grey furred female held Akame from behind. Spotting the missing presence of Yoruyoshi, Naruto was about to contemplate how he would go about escaping from Hana's grip when he smelled something cooking. Sniffing the air and detecting the delicious scents of various meats, Naruto could only deduce that the 'lead' Delta had learned how to cook in the past or something and had taken to making breakfast for everyone that morning. Nudging Hana's shoulder, Naruto attempted to wake her up, only to get an annoyed groan on the first attempt, an irritated growl the second time, and then a painful bite on the chest from the third attempt. Knowing she was awake and just trying to irritate him by that point since she did it quite often, Naruto had rolled over on top of Hana to teasingly pin her down, only for his eyes to widen as they kept going.

_Thud!_

"Owww..." Naruto groaned, lying on his back with a startled Hana straddling him. Caught off guard by the sudden noise, Sayuri and Akame had jumped to their feet in an instant, only to find Naruto and Hana on the floor beside the couch. As worried and sorry as she was, Hana couldn't keep from giggling as she leaned forward and gently kissed Naruto's cheek, never noticing that Sayuri and Akame had slipped into the kitchen where Yoruyoshi was to give them some time alone while also seeking out what smelled so good.

"Hehehe...I-I'm so sorry, Naruto-kun. I forgot that we were on the couch and not in bed." Hana apologized, still grinning despite Naruto glaring at her slightly with a small frown. Leaning down and kissing him gently, Hana still continued to grin while caressing his cheek and the side of his head. "Oh, my poor baby...I'm sorry."

"Yeah, right..." Naruto muttered a bit stubbornly and sarcastically before gently kissing her back, finding it impossible to stay mad at her. As Hana got off of him and let him stand up, Naruto was a little confused as to why his injuries weren't hurting all that bad apart from a dull ache, but figured they were almost completely healed by now. Letting out a yawn, Naruto decided to visit the hospital _voluntarily_, for the first time in his life, after breakfast and look into getting the all-clear to remove the annoying bands of gauze-cloth. "So, what changed your mind?"

"Well..._They_ did." Hana went quiet after that as she blushed heavily before gently taking his hand and placing it on her stomach to clue him in. Smiling lovingly, Naruto pulled her into his arms with her back to his chest without removing his hand from her belly. Closing her eyes and relaxing against him, Hana nuzzled his arm with her cheek while Naruto leaned down and nuzzled her neck and shoulder, gently touching his nose to the ever-ultra-sensitive spot at the base of her neck where he had marked her. Letting out a soft whimper and shivering as her knees became weak, Hana gripped his arms as tight as she could to keep from falling, only to weakly bite him on the arm, succeeding only in making Naruto laugh quietly. "C-Cut it out, Naruto-kun. You kn-know what that d-does to me..."

"And you know what biting does to me, yet you still do it..." Naruto growled quietly and teasingly into her ear, making Hana whimper again. Suddenly letting her go while stepping to the side and causing her to fall back and land on the couch, Naruto gave her an impish smirk as she sunk into the plush cushions while Hana, blushing heavily again, glared at him indignantly from her spot. "Now, come on. I think Yoru's making breakfast for us."

"Jerk..." Hana grumbled under her breath as she stood back up, still blushing as she followed after him, uncaring of the fact she was clad in only her usual sleep-wear despite the prescence of three others in their home...

**xXxXxXx**

"Finally, I'm free of those damn things..." Naruto, free of his armor, grumbled as he rubbed at his chest where the bandages had flattened his fur slightly. Giving the nurse a silent nod of thanks, Naruto slipped back out into the hallway and started making his way to the front door to head back home when he came across a familiar face. That same person suddenly gave him a beaming grin and ran forward, nearly tackling him to the ground from their speed. Just as he was about to say something in a warm greeting, Naruto frowned slightly, feeling Hinata's shoulders shake slightly as his fur became a little damp where her face was buried against his chest. Slowly wrapping his arms around her, Naruto gently rubbed her back, smiling sadly. "Shh...I'm right here. There's no need to cry, Hinata. I'm fine."

"I-I know that, but...W-When Hana-chan t-told me th-that you got hurt..." Hinata mumbled out without looking up from his chest, tightening her embrace as she choked back a sob. Naruto sighed quietly and pushed her hood back before gently smoothing her hair back and down, essentially 'petting' her. Almost instantly, she started to relax before reluctantly pulling away from him after a few minutes of savoring the attention she was getting, using her sleeve cuffs to dry her eyes and looking up at him with a shy smile and a faint blush. She had always liked it when he did that. "I-I'm happy to see that y-you're okay now..."

"I'm glad to see that you're doing okay, as well." Naruto replied before frowning a little. "I'm sorry that I haven't been able to spend much time with you. I've been rather busy."

"Naruto-kun, it's okay. I understand. You had barely just gotten out of the hospital before they sent you off in search of Tsunade-sama." Hinata reassured, smiling up at him as she held one of his hands with both of her own. Hinata suddenly blushed fiercely and looked away, smiling shyly. "H-H-How's Ha-Hana-chan d-doing? I-I h-haven't b-been able t-to ch-check on her all we-week be-because of t-training and m-m-missions."

"Hana's doing just fine, Hinata. She's been a little edgy recently, so why don't you pay her another _visit_?" Naruto suggested with a teasing smirk, making Hinata's blush grow even hotter and darker. Feeling a little light-headed, Hinata rested her head against Naruto's chest, taking advantage of her dizziness to avoid looking at him out of sheer embarrassment.

"S-S-She t-told you?" Hinata inquired meekly, nearly making Naruto laugh at her timid and shy reaction. Luckily, he managed to maintain his composure.

"No, but I smelled both your's and Anko's scents in the bedroom last night after I got home. Don't worry, little one. I'm not mad. In fact, I want to thank you for it." Naruto replied, making Hinata look up at him in surprise. "Although you two slept together, multiple times judging from the strength of the scents, after I gave Hana clear instructions not to until after the pups are born, I still want to thank you for being there for her and keeping her company. If you hadn't, I'm pretty sure Hana would have gone stir crazy or stressed herself out with worry while I was away."

"I-It w-wasn't that b-b-big of a d-d-deal..." Hinata stuttered out again while staring down at the groun, her cheeks burning a deep scarlet as she became embarrassed and shy once more. As she pulled her hair back over her shoulder and flipped her hood back over her head, Hinata held her hands behind her back while nibbling on her bottom lip. Laughing slightly at her reaction, Naruto leaned down as he cupped her chin and tilted her head up, gently kissing her forehead and nearly making the Hyuuga heiress faint where she stood.

"If you don't mind, I'd like for you to stop by the compound later today. There are a few new...additions...to the family that I'd like you to meet." Naruto stated calmly, getting a shy and absent-minded nod from Hinata as she held her hands in front of her mouth and chest, both appendages still hidden by her jacket's sleeves. "Alright. I'll see you then, Hina-chan."

"..." Hinata was silent as Naruto left, her eyes wide and her blush slowly growing more intense as Naruto's last words echoed in her mind. _'H-Hina-chan? Only Hana-chan has called me that before...'_

Feeling even more disoriented than before, Hinata barely made it to a nearby chair before she lost her balance, quickly sitting down...

As Naruto left the hospital, he started thinking about the new 'additions' he spoke of, his three Deltas. Prior to arriving at the compound when he first returned, Naruto had gone out and purchased some new clothing for them, but he was a bit surprised by their 'fashion senses'. Namely, the fact they had taken to wearing about just as much as they did before, if not a bit less. Yoruyoshi now wore an outfit similar to her original one, only with a tube top instead of a tank top. Sayuri had chosen to wear a pair of black spandex short-shorts and a black sports bra top. As for Akame, the smaller and bustier Delta had taken to wearing a white tank top that barely contained her truly enormous breasts along with a pair of white booty shorts that hugged her rear like a second skin and left the thin straps to her red thong visible as they crossed over her hips.

It was safe to say that Akame was 'bolder' than the other two, who were already seemingly shameless...

_'Now that I think about it, Father's journals spoke of a few of his encounters with female Omegas prior to meeting Mother.'_ Naruto mused thoughtfully, scratching under his chin as he walked down the road towards the compound. Judging from the contents of Kokushoku's journals, Naruto could only deduce that female Omegas, and even some male Omegas, were naturally shameless when it came to their body. He guessed that it was due to them already being at the lowest rank amongst the packs, making the thoughts and feelings of others towards their appearance an insubstantial matter.

However, Naruto had noticed that the three Deltas were acting a bit...strange now. Well, Akame, to be specific. All throughout breakfast that morning, Akame had been acting a bit shy around him, reminding him a little of Hinata. The auburn furred female would often throw him glances every so often, only to look down almost as soon as he looked in her general direction, getting flustered every once in awhile and even stuttering at one point when he asked her if she slept okay last night. Yoruyoshi and Sayuri, on the other hand, hadn't been acting much different, apart from almost never making eye contact with Hana, despite their ranking. It was, without a doubt, due to Hana's reaction to them last night...

"Gonna have to take care of that later..." Naruto muttered out loud while scratching the back of his neck. Glancing to the side and spotting a training ground, Naruto paused in mid-step, casting another glance back in the direction of the Kurotsuki clan compound. "Well, I guess I could do with some light training. I haven't exactly been capable of working out recently..."

**xXxXxXx**

"Um...Hey..." Hana muttered uncertaintly as she approached the three female Deltas, who were all sitting at the dining room table and talking amongst themselves. Blushing a little as they all looked towards her, Hana started feeling a little nervous and rubbed the back of her neck before continuing. "I, uh...I'm sorry for reacting like I did. I just wasn't expecting Naruto-kun to come home with another female, let alone three..."

"It's alright, Hana-sama. Naruto-sama warned us that you might react like that." Yoruyoshi responded, surprising Hana a little. At the pregnant woman's expression, Yoruyoshi smiled slightly and continued. "We know our place, Hana-sama."

"..." Hana was silent after that, feeling even worse than before. She just thought it was kind of sad that someone could say such words with a smile on their face, whether it was real or not. "It's not just that. We just met and all, but I wanted to let you know that me and Naruto-kun were talking earlier before he left and...I want you to know that you're all a part of this family, too. Nothing will ever change that."

"H-Hana-sama..." Suyuri muttered quietly with shock as she and the other two Deltas stared at their Alpha Female with surprise. Yoruyoshi even had tears in her eyes. Without saying another word, Hana bowed her head slightly in departure and turned around, walking away to tend to other things in the house. Once again, Akame was the first to react. She quietly got up out of her chair and followed after Hana and caught up to her just before she reached the stairs to the second floor. They couldn't hear what was said between them, but they saw Akame hug the shorter female before leaving the house, probably to isolate herself for a little bit in order to regain her composure; it wasn't uncommon for the younger Delta to do so. She had been like that ever since they had all met each other when they were younger.

"Sayuri-chan, could you go make sure Akame-chan is okay? I'm going to go check on Hana-sama." Yoruyoshi asked softly, recieving a nod from the other female lycan. As Sayuri left, Yoruyoshi went up the stairs and followed after Hana. Coming to a stop in the doorway to one of the larger rooms in the house, Yoruyoshi glanced around, knowing about the plans for the room. Standing at one of the two windows that illuminated the room, Hana stared out over the empty Kurotsuki compound with a sad look on her face, caught between sorrow and hope as she gently rubbed her stomach.

"For years, me and Naruto-kun both thought that he was the last one. So did many others." Hana spoke up, her voice quiet and soft as it fluctuated slightly from the emotions raging within her. "He's been so alone all these years. Only recently has he come to truly know the wonders of happiness."

"As have you." Yoruyoshi added softly, something that made Hana look down at her stomach with a loving smile on her lips. "As have Akame, Sayuri, and myself. Before we met Naruto-sama, we were on the verge of starving to death, but he found us and rescued us. After I recovered, I could tell he was happy to find other wolf-kin. It's not surprising. Our numbers rivaled those of normal humans long ago, but after _Him_, we have not been able to recover our lost strength..."

"You mean Kogarashi, right?" Hana inquired softly while glancing over at the taller female. She could feel her muscles start to grow tight and tense all across her body. Some of her joints ached, especially her knuckles, shoulders, neck, and lower back. Her feet and ankles also hurt quite a bit. It wouldn't be much longer. Hana guessed she had about another two days, at most, to spend as a normal looking human before she transformed into a lycanthrope like her lover and the three Deltas. Before she could start imagining what it would be like or how she would look, Hana's thoughts were broken by Yoruyoshi's response, which came only a couple seconds after Hana's question.

"Yes. The Great White Wolf caused a slow-moving chain reaction, resulting in fewer and fewer of us with every generation. Thus, wolf-kin females became more and more fertile, allowing for larger litters than what you may consider 'normal' or 'average'." The Delta explained, walking further into the room so that she was standing beside Hana. "Even then, however, it has done little more than stall our impending extinction. The war with Kogarashi resulted not only in a great many deaths of our people, but it tipped the scales of ecological balance. Before, Shishisensou and humans were equals in population and treated one another with a degree of respect, but the humans feared us because we were much stronger than any of them. Thus, Kogarashi used it to his advantage, rallying humans to his cause and even after he died and the humans forgot about him, they continue to follow his words. The humans later declared war on us and its been ungoing for many centuries."

"Oh, my god...That's horrible." Hana muttered, tenderly reaching out and rubbing Yoruyoshi's shoulder comfortingly. The taller female gave Hana a soft and warm smile in return, but the mother-to-be could still see the pain in Yoruyoshi's eyes. Now that she thought about it, she had seen that same look in Naruto's eyes in the past, back before they pledged themselves to one another.

"Do not worry, Hana-sama. We will continue to live on, no matter what." Yoruyoshi started, looking back out the window and watching as Sayuri and Akame came into sight from a corner of the compound, both heading back to the house. "It's what were best at; fighting. Fighting for territory, fighting for love, fighting for food, fighting to protect, fighting to kill, fighting to survive. Everything we do, involves some form of fighting. Even when mating, for some of the..._rougher_ wolf-kin pairings."

"..." Hana blushed heavily at the Delta's last sentence, recalling the second night that she and Naruto had spent together during their five-day long love-making. That one had been especially rough, resulting in them both recieving a great deal of bloody scratches and bite marks. If it hadn't been for the fact Hana was skilled with healing ninjutsu, they would have gotten blood on virtually everything 'usable' in the house. That, and they would have gained many, _many_ new scars to add to those they were already adorned with.

Yoruyoshi, spotting Hana's reaction, could immediately tell that Hana knew _exactly_ what she was talking about. Then again, it was a very common thing amongst pairings, mostly out of a need to find out who the true dominant participant was, but it was also a bonding ritual of sorts. While painful, messy, and seemingly barbaric, there had never been a wolf-kin pairing that had split apart after such unusual courtship-related behaviour. The Delta wished that she, too, could one day experience it, but as rare as their kin were and her Alpha already having been claimed, Yoruyoshi doubted she would ever find a proper mate...

"Yoruyoshi-chan, would you mind teaching me more about...wolf-kin culture?" Hana inquired, glancing up at Yoruyoshi, who peered back at her with a look of startled surprise. It wasn't very often people wanted to learn about them, having been viewed as 'monsters' and 'abominations' for the past millenia. Hana then gained a sheepish look and blushed, smiling shyly as she looked down and rubbed her mildly distended belly. "I haven't been able to find the time to have Naruto-kun teach me, with him being out on missions and all..."

"It...It would be an honor to teach you, Hana-sama." Yoruyoshi responded, stuttering faintly at first before recomposing herself. Smiling warmly, Hana turned and made to leave the room with Yoruyoshi following behind her. "What would you like to learn first?"

"Well, uh...Could you tell me more about, um..." Hana trailed off for a moment out of embarrassment, blushing heavily as she glanced at her fertile belly. "About wolf-kin pregnancies and about being 'Turned'?"

"A-Alright..." Yoruyoshi responded, a little embarrassed by the chosen topic as well...

**xXx**

"Oww..." Naruto whined quietly, rubbing at his chest where he had been stabbed. Granted, it had just healed, so it was bound to be a bit sore, but his idea of 'light training' needed to be re-evaluated. Maybe he should take it a little easy for the time being. Pressing his hand against the Kurotsuki compound gate and unlocking it with his chakra, Naruto pushed it aside while entering, letting it close on its own behind him as he walked to his home. Opening the front door, Naruto barely made it past the thresh-hold when he was suddenly tackled by a blur of auburn fur.

"ARUFA!" Akame cried happily, wrapping her arms around his waist while nuzzling his chest excitedly, ignoring the fact she had almost knocked him over. Laughing slightly at her reaction, Naruto wrapped an arm around her while closing the door behind him. Gently petting the top of her head, Naruto looked down at her.

"Someone seem's happier than usual." Naruto started with a slight smirk while Akame opened her eyes and looked up at him innocently, blushing beneath her fur. Averting her gaze out of embarrassment, Akame refused to let go of him. "So, what's got you so excited?"

"We-Well, um..." Akame started stammering, only for them to be distracted when Sayuri came racing down the stairs.

"N-Naruto-sama! It's Hana-sama!" The grey furred Delta exclaimed as she came to a stop, gently grabbing Naruto's arm and pulling him along while Akame detached from her Alpha. "She's starting to Shift!"

"What? Where is she?" Naruto asked as they reached the stairs, easily outpacing Sayuri in his eagerness to reach his mate.

"The master bedroom. Yoruyoshi-chan is currently with her right now." Sayuri answered, only for Naruto to start walking all the quicker, leaving Sayuri and Akame behind. Quickly reaching the door to the room, Naruto paused and took a breath to relax a little before entering, spotting Yoruyoshi sitting at the edge of the bed with Hana lying down, her head resting in the Delta's lap. Hana was sweating and shivering a little, obvious in discomfort. Making his way over to the bed, Naruto sat down and leaned over, gently kissing Hana on the side of her head after brushing a strand of hair out of her face.

"H-Hey, you..." Hana whispered with a weak smile, only to grimace and bite back a mild cry of pain as her spine started burning again. Naruyo could only smile softly and gently kiss the side of her head again.

"Yoru, would you mind stepping out? I'll let you and others know if we'll need anything." Naruto requested kindly, getting a knowing smile from Yoruyoshi as She carefully got up, letting Naruto sit where she had been. Without saying another word, Yoruyoshi slipped out of the room to give them some time alone. Almost as if on cue, Hana suddenly tensed up, curling up slightly as she gripped Naruto's leg and groaned. Gently petting his beloved mate, Naruto decided to give her the only piece of advice he could. "Relax, Hana. Don't fight it."

"Ngh...B-Better...Ugh...Be-better said than done, love..." Hana muttered back with a humorless smirk while glancing up at him out of the corner of her eye, refusing to move her head from Naruto's lap while her response made Naruto chuckle quietly. Letting out a canine-like whine as he moved out from where he was, Hana stayed quiet as Naruto sat down beside her on the bed and started to gently pull her shorts down, making Hana blush fiercely despite the situation. He could see her unspoken question in her eyes, however, and smiled softly.

"When you start to Shift, your clothes won't fit you and they'll be ruined." Naruto remarked, only to lean over and lovingly kiss her on the lips while letting his hand rest on her hip. Letting out a soft moan, Hana looped her arms around his neck and shoulders, smiling weakly once again as she maintained the lip-lock. Releasing her hold on him after a few moments, Hana simply let him undress her, admiring how he was being so gentle with her. She shivered again and let out a strangeled moan when his hands brushed against her bare breasts while he was taking her shirt off, her arousal spiking despite the discomfort of her first 'Shift'.

"Mm-hm. You're just...using it as an excuse...to see me naked." Hana teased playfully as she laid on her back slightly and gently took his hands, putting them palm to palm. She still couldn't get over how big he was when compared to her. At least now, they'll be a bit more evened out. Without saying a word, Hana moved his hands and had one of them cover her left breast with her own hand on top of his. Shaking his head slightly at his mate's behavior, Naruto leaned down and kissed Hana on the lips again while gently groping the plump mound of flesh enclosed in his hand, drawing out another moan from his lover. "Mmm...God, I want you in me again..."

"I know you do, Hana. I want to be in you as well, but you know why we can't..." Naruto responded calmly while leaning down and lightly touching his nose to her belly, making Hana blush heavily once again with a motherly smile on her face. The mood, however, was ruined when Hana suddenly tensed once more, lying on her side again as she curled up, gnashing her teeth and gripping the bed sheets as she fought to bite back a cry of pain.

"Shhh...Relax, Hana...It'll be okay..." Naruto whispered into her ear while brushing her hair out of her face with his hand, leaning down and lightly kissing her on the side of her head. Smiling weakly, Hana relaxed a little, knowing she would be okay so long as Naruto was around. Naruto, however, frowned slightly. Since it was Hana's first time, it would be hours before it was finally over. He knew she would be alright, but Hana would be absolutely exhausted afterwards and it would probably leave her bed-ridden for the next couple days.

"Ngh..." Hana groaned, her eyes squeezed shut as the vertabrae in her back visibly distended, pushing out against her taut skin. Hushing her quietly, Naruto continued to pet her, smoothing her hair back and gently holding one of her hands in his free hand...

**xXx**

"Hnnn..." Akame whined softly as she remained beside the door, lying on the floor and curled up. Sayuri and Yoruyoshi were down in the kitchen as they made dinner and their guest, Hyuuga Hinata, was sitting beside Akame as they waited for news on Hana. "Hnnnnn..."

"Shh...It'll be okay, Akame-chan. Hana-chan will be fine." Hinata reassured the smallest Delta, gently petting the top of her head and neck. Almost instantly, Akame relaxed, enjoying the attention. Appreciative of Hinata's efforts, Akame curled up a little more and rested her head in Hinata's lap, unknowingly making the timid and shy heiress blush heavily along with stirring up the young woman's lustful feelings. Luckily, Hinata managed to reign them back in and relax, getting back to petting Akame as they waited. Still blushing quite heavily, Hinata was starting to get worried about herself recently; mostly due to her suddenly insatiable lust and arousal. Not to mention her bisexual orientation and unstoppable curiousity.

_'I wonder what it would be like now, with Hana-chan being a she-wolf...'_ Hinata mentally wondered, her blush burning hotter as her breathing grew heavier. Squeezing her eyes shut, Hinata took a deep breath and shook her head to clear out such thoughts. That was when the door to the master bedroom finally opened...

**xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx**


End file.
